Rethinking the Law of Private Property

In Rethinking the Law of Private Property, eminent legal scholars consider how private property rights might be transformed and realigned to better cope with modern challenges. They rethink current paradigms around private property and natural resource ownership in light of police power regulations, health rules and expanded land-use regulations.

Vicki Been, Daniel Cole, Robin Craig, Richard Epstein, Jan Laitos, Roger Pilon, J.B. Ruhl, James Salzman and Ilya Somin are among America’s leading scholars on private property rights. Their chapters consider three critical issues facing private property owners in the 21st century. (1) To what extent may constitutional protections of private property resist police power limits restricting property uses? (2) Do developers of property for housing have the ability to provide affordable housing and rental properties when the government wishes to advance social policies that may impede that development? (3) Can notions of private property adapt to accommodate demands for more efficient allocation of scarce but much needed natural resources, such as water and ecosystem services?

Students and academics in property law and government law will greatly benefit from this vital resource. Its discerning insights will also interest legal practitioners and teachers of property law, land use planning, environmental law, constitutional law, water law and natural resources law.