Cattle Raisers Celebrate Texas Supreme Court Decision On Eminent Domain

The Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association celebrated the Texas Supreme Court decision in the case of Hlavinka et al. v. HSC Pipeline Partnership, LLC. The ruling holds that landowners in Texas may use privately negotiated pipeline easement transactions as evidence of market value in condemnation proceedings.

Though the decision did not uphold legal challenges to a pipeline’s ability to exercise eminent domain for a pipeline to a single customer, it remains a significant victory for Texas landowners.

Many landowners have privately negotiated pipeline easements on their property. Those easements are obtained without the threat of eminent domain, where negotiation between the parties establishes an accurate, fair market value. Previously, a pipeline company attempting to acquire an easement through condemnation could ignore the fair market value established by those privately negotiated easements.