Oral Argument in Devillier v. Texas Suggests Victory for Property Rights Likely

In many cases, compensation is the only possible remedy for the violation of the property owner’s Takings Clause rights, as there is no way to address it by an injunction. For example, Justice Amy Coney Barrett noted that an injunction couldn’t fix a “temporary taking” where the government has temporarily taken an owner’s property, but then stopped. I would add the same is true of cases where the government has destroyed or damaged the owner’s property—as in Devillier itself. Short of inventing a time travel device and going back in time, Texas cannot undo the flooding of Devillier’s land. The only possible remedy for that violation of his rights is the payment of compensation.

https://reason.com/volokh/2024/01/16/oral-argument-in-devillier-v-texas-suggests-victory-for-property-rights-likely/