Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council
| Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council | |
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| Argued March 2, 1992 Decided June 29, 1992 |
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| Full case name | David H. Lucas, v. South Carolina Coastal Council |
| Citations | 505 U.S. 1003 (more)
12 S. Ct. 2886; 120 L. Ed. 2d 798; 1992 U.S. LEXIS 4537; 60 U.S.L.W. 4842; 34 ERC (BNA) 1897; 92 Daily Journal DAR 9030; 22 ELR 21104; 6 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. S 715
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| Prior history | On certiorari from the South Carolina Supreme Court. |
| Subsequent history | On remand at the South Carolina Supreme Court: Lucas v. S.C. Coastal Council, 309 S.C. 424 (S.C. 1992) |
| Holding | |
| A regulation that deprives an owner of all economically beneficial uses of land constitutes a taking unless the proscribed use interests were not part of the title to begin with. In other words, a law or decree with the effect of depriving all economically beneficial use must do no more than duplicate the result that could have been achieved in the courts under the law of nuisance. | |
| Court membership | |
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| Case opinions | |
| Majority | Scalia, joined by Rehnquist, White, O'Connor, Thomas |
| Concurrence | Kennedy |
| Dissent | Blackmun |
| Dissent | Stevens |
| Laws applied | |
| U.S. Const. amends. V, XIV | |
Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, 505 U.S. 1003 (1992), was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States established the "total takings" test for evaluating whether a particular regulatory action constitutes a regulatory taking that requires compensation.
South Carolina's Coastal Zone Management Act (1977) required owners of coast land in "critical areas" near beaches to obtain permits from Respondent South Carolina Coastal Council before committing the land to new uses. The state's Beachfront Management Act (1988), S.C. Code Ann. § 48-39-10 et seq. (1989 Cum. Supp.), increased the regulations on the use of coastal land.
Petitioner Lucas purchased beachfront properties in 1986 for $975,000. David H. Lucas owned two vacant oceanfront lots in the Beachwood East Subdivision of the Wild Dunes development on the Isle of Palms in Charleston County, South Carolina. The Beachfront Management Act effectively prevented Petitioner Lucas from erecting homes on properties due to the effects it will have on the public beach.
Lucas filed suit asserting that the restrictions on the use of his lots was a taking of his property without just compensation. The lower court agreed and awarded Lucas $1,232,387.50 as just compensation for the regulatory taking. The government of South Carolina appealed, and the Supreme Court of South Carolina reversed, Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, 304 S.C. 376 (S.C. 1991).
Petitioner Lucas seeks reversal of the South Carolina Supreme Court judgment, reinstatement of the trial court judgment, and declaration that the Beachfront Management Act constituted a taking.
Whether the South Carolina Supreme Court erred in holding that the Beachfront Management Act was a valid exercise of the police power and did not constitute a taking.
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