City of Oroville, Petitioner v. the Superior Court of Butte County, Respondent; California Joint Powers Risk…

Summary

The court held that inverse condemnation liability requires more than a causal connection between a public improvement and private property damage. The damage must be substantially caused by an inherent risk of the improvement's deliberate design, construction, or maintenance, and the sewage backup was not such a risk because the property owner failed to install a legally required backwater valve that would have prevented or substantially mitigated the damage. The court reversed the Court of Appeal's judgment and directed further proceedings consistent with this standard.