Property Types
The Florida question most states never ask: what happens to the business, not just the premises.
In almost every state, an eminent domain claim ends at the real estate. The land and buildings are valued, the owner is paid, and whatever happens to the business operating there is treated as its own misfortune.
Florida is different. Section 73.071(3)(b) of the Florida Statutes brings damage to a business within what a jury may award, subject to conditions that include the business having been established more than five years where the taking occurs on or after 1 January 2005.
The short answer
If a business of standing operates on the property, the claim has two halves in Florida: the real estate and the business. Raising the second one late is the commonest way it gets lost.
How the claim is framed and what it covers.
Read moreThe premises side of the claim.
Read moreOften the mechanism by which trade is damaged.
Read moreThe commonest pattern on a trading site.
Read moreHarm to the property that remains.
Read moreHow the components fit together.
Read moreThe statutory conditions turn partly on this. Get the dates straight at the outset.
Direction of approach, turning movements and visibility are the mechanisms by which a frontage take damages trade.
Damage to a business is proved with evidence. Records predating the project are far more persuasive than reconstructions afterwards.
Owner occupied and tenanted situations differ, and both the lease and the ownership position matter.
A long construction period outside a trading site has effects worth documenting as they happen.
Section 73.091 places reasonable defence costs on the condemning authority, and section 73.092 sets attorney fees by the benefit obtained.
Section 73.071(3)(b) brings business damages within what a jury may award in defined circumstances. It is one of the most owner favourable features of Florida eminent domain law and it has no equivalent in most states.
They include the length of time the business has been established, with more than five years required where the taking occurs on or after 1 January 2005. The detail matters and should be checked with a licensed Florida attorney against your own facts.
Business damages most commonly arise on partial takings, where access or parking changes damage trade while the premises remain.
The position differs between owner occupiers and tenants, and the lease terms matter. Take advice on your specific arrangement.
Explore Florida resources matched to your property type, the project affecting it, and the stage you have reached.
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