Litigation is a specialty in which few real estate professionals engage. While some firms provide litigation-related services, few have the generalized, specialized, and technical knowledge or the breadth and depth of experience of the Great Plains staff. Some of the complexities of litigation services are outlined below.
Litigation may involve a variety of property types including residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and special purpose properties. The staff at Great Plains is experienced in all major property types and many specialized property uses ranging from single family residences to complex specialized uses such as specialized manufacturing facilities, recreational facilities, educational facilities, religious facilities, and hospitals.
Litigation sometimes involves evaluation of fractional property interests and/or divided property interests. Our staff is experienced in evaluation of fee simple estates, leasehold estates, and leased fee estates and is experienced in evaluation of the impact of permanent easements, temporary easements, and the taking of partial fee simple estates. The staff is also experienced in the evaluation of divided property interests such as surface rights, subsurface rights, air rights, water rights, or mineral rights. This experience also extends to evaluation of rights and benefits accruing as a result of entitlement programs.
The requirement of real estate expertise in litigation is wide ranging. Some more traditional functions include estate evaluation, divorce proceedings, condemnation, tax disputes, property rights disputes, contamination issues, and collateral evaluation disputes. Each of these functions requires specialized knowledge of applicable evaluation techniques, governing laws, and legal proceedings. Our staff is experienced in litigation involving eminent domain proceedings, ad valorem proceedings, and even criminal proceedings. Our experience includes both state and federal rules and regulations.
Litigation services are required by a broad client base. The firm provides services to governmental and quasi-governmental agencies as well as to institutional, corporate, and private clients. We can provide services on individual properties as well as large project based assignments.
Eminent domain cases result from takings for a wide range of public uses including power lines, highway and street rights-of-way, pipelines and other utility easements, zoning actions, control of access, and wildlife or other natural resources management. Our staff is familiar with the impact of these and other types of takings on real estate and property rights. We have completed many related studies which serve as the basis of our opinions, and continually update these studies.
Litigation often involves interaction with other professions and experts such as architects, engineers, contractors, developers, relocation experts, and attorneys. The experience of our staff provides us with the generalized knowledge necessary to understand and work with other professionals. Our experience has revealed the necessity of a “team” approach to litigation issues with each team member sharing expertise and knowledge to achieve positive results. As a result of these assignments, we are in touch with a stable of experts in many professions which may significantly contribute to solutions to problems.
While many litigation cases can be resolved prior to trial, the services of an expert witness are often required. Our staff is experienced in expert witness services ranging from informal hearings up to and including grand jury hearings. We have provided testimony in jurisdictions ranging from the county courts to the federal courts.
