Private eminent domain power
Arentz Family v. PSEG Renewable Transmission
In brief
- Where it stands
- Petition Pending
Awaiting an order on the petition
- What it’s about
- PSEG, a private transmission developer without delegated eminent-domain power (the power to take land for public use), sued Maryland landowners who refused to let it survey their properties; a court order allowed entry, and the Fourth Circuit upheld it.
- What's at stake
- Whether PSEG may enter these landowners’ properties for surveys before receiving state authority remains unresolved.
Summary: written with AI from the case record.
What it's about
The landowners have asked the Supreme Court whether a court may let a private company exercise that power before the state grants it.
The dispute began after Maryland landowners refused to let PSEG survey their properties. A court order allowed entry, and the Fourth Circuit upheld it.
Maryland law permits people acting for the state, or entities with the power to take land for public use, to enter property for studies and surveys.
Question presented
Whether a preliminary injunction may be used to allow a private party to exercise sovereign eminent domain powers before it has been delegated that authority?
What happens next
The Court must decide whether to hear the case. No oral argument or decision date is set.
Documents
Docket activity
New analysis added
AI analysis generated: Case Briefing
Case data updated: summary, question_presented, generation_metadata
Case data updated: question_presented, extraction_metadata
Brief added: Petition
Sources
Primary materials from the Court and the parties. Grounded in docket records and cited sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.