Albert Hanson Lumber Co. v. United States

Background

The dispute involved the United States and the private owner of a canal and surrounding land in Louisiana. The Government sought to take the canal and a 300-foot-wide strip as part of a long intracoastal waterway project. Congress had passed several river-and-harbor laws authorizing the waterway work and authorizing the Secretary of War to acquire necessary land; one 1912 law specifically authorized purchase of the canal at a cost not to exceed $65,000. The canal company’s board adopted resolutions agreeing to sell for that sum. The owner objected, the district court allowed condemnation and a jury award was rendered, the court of appeals affirmed, and the case came to this Court on error.

Reasoning

The core question was whether federal law allowed the Government to condemn the canal and the adjoining 300-foot strip or whether the statutory purchase-price limit prevented condemnation. The Court held that the statutes, read together, authorized the Secretary to acquire the property either by purchase or by condemnation, and that the purchase-price authorization did not negate the separate statutory power to condemn. The opinion explains that the government’s power to take property for public use remains subject to the constitutional requirement of just compensation, which must be judicially determined and effectively paid before title vests.

Real world impact

The decision allows the Government to proceed with taking the canal and the 300-foot strip for the intracoastal project while preserving the owner’s right to a judicially determined award. The company’s prior resolution setting a $65,000 sale price may be admitted as evidence but does not fix compensation. The lower-court judgment upholding the taking and the award was affirmed, permitting the project to move forward under established rules for payment of just compensation.