Serving South King County and the Surrounding Areas.

Eminent Domain/Condemnation

photo of attorney Hanis at a computer

When you are in need of an eminent domain attorney in South King County, look no further than Hanis Irvine Prothero. On eminent domain and condemnation cases in Tukwila, Renton, Kent, Federal Way, Enumclaw and Auburn, as well as Seattle and Tacoma, our eminent domain team has worked with both government and private parties to resolve the issues.

We’ve all heard the old joke about those frightening words, “I’m from the government and I’m here to help you.” When the government comes calling, and says it needs some or all of your property for a “public purpose”, or wants to build a public project for you to be paid (sometimes for decades) by assessments against your property, you need an attorney!

Even if the government doesn’t ask first, but starts using your property, or impacts your property by its activities, you still may be in an “inverse” condemnation situation.

Hanis has been on both sides of the issues you will be facing. He has represented government agencies and private property owners for years in dealing with the impacts and property acquisition issues related to public works projects. He has represented both government and private individuals in court regarding assessments in Local Improvement Districts. With his perspective from both sides, he knows what to expect, what’s going on behind the scenes with his opponents, and has developed the connections and stable of experts to make sure you are treated fairly.

Patrick Hanis have represented property owners facing condemnation by the state, by cities, by utility districts, and by transportation agencies. Most recently, they have handled cases for property owners involving the cities of Kent and Covington, and acquisition cases by Sound Transit. It is an understatement to say that the final results in those matters were far better for their clients than what those agencies offered to the property owners before Patrick were retained.

While promises of specific results can never be made, condemnation and eminent domain cases are one area of the law where a qualified eminent domain attorney can make a very substantial difference. For that reason, the attorneys at Hanis Irvine Prothero are often willing to take such matters on a contingency basis – meaning we only get paid based on the amount of benefit we achieve for you.

With Local Improvement Districts, too often we see property owners facing government agencies unprepared, without resources, and with unfair assessments permanently in place before they even realize the need legal help. If you’ve ever been in one of these situations, you know what a lopsided match it can be. In his most recent case for a property owner in a Local Improvement District matter, he got the Court to cut the amount of assessment against his client’s property in half! The other property owners in that neighborhood represented themselves before their City Council. None of them were able to get their assessments substantially reduced, and are now paying essentially double for the same project benefits than his clients. Results like these are not unusual.

You owe it to yourself to contact Michael Hanis and Patrick Hanis if you are facing one of these types of governmental action. They will meet with you for a no-cost, no-obligation consultation, and give you a fair and candid assessment of what they might be able to do for you.