OOThe law of both the United States and Oregon provide that while government may acquire private property when necessary for a legitimate public purpose, when doing so it must pay the owner "just compensation" for it. The courts have translated that generally to mean that the owner is entitled to the fair cash market value of the property taken, plus any lessening in the fair cash market value of the remaining part not taken by the government.
OOGovernment, whether at the federal, state, or local level, is only as good as the officials who act on its behalf. Accordingly, the actions of government when it comes to the taking of private property from its citizens may be fair and in conformance with the law; or it may not be. Sometimes governmental agencies, acting through their officials and agents and employees, misbehave. When these functionaries, whether through over-zealousness or ignorance or mistake, attempt to acquire private property for less than that to which the owner is justly entitled, the law provides remedy.
OOBut facing up to errant government, at whatever level, can be daunting. Sometimes, just compensation is best achieved through face-to-face informal negotiating with government representatives. In other circumstances, the best course is litigation. Condemnation trials entail putting together for the owner a team of real estate appraisal experts and other witnesses capable of persuasively presenting to a jury a compelling case on behalf of the property owner.
OOMr. McCulloch has handled condemnation cases, big and small, for both private and public clients throughout Oregon. For many years the chief trial counsel for the Oregon Department of Justice, Mr. McCulloch knows how to get the attention of government and government bureaucracies. He has negotiated hundreds of satisfactory settlements on behalf of his condemnation clients; and he also has tried over a hundred condemnation cases before juries the length and breadth of the state, accumulating a superb record of wins for his clients.
OOJohn McCulloch looks forward to assisting private persons in attaining full and fair "just compensation."