Property Reserve, Inc., Petitioner v. the Superior Court of San Joaquin County, Respondent; Department of Water…

Summary

The court held that California's precondemnation entry-and-testing statutes authorize the Department of Water Resources to conduct the proposed environmental surveys and geological borings, including activities that may substantially interfere with property use. The statutes provide a constitutionally adequate procedure without requiring a classic condemnation action because they require a specific court order, a deposit of probable compensation, and recovery for actual damage or substantial interference. The court reformed the procedure to give property owners the option of a jury determination of damages and reversed the Court of Appeal's judgment in its entirety. Justice Liu, concurring, agreed with the result but would have reached it on the ground that classic condemnation is unnecessary when the existence and extent of any taking or damage remain genuinely uncertain.