FAQs
About Environmental
Q: Why don’t the state environmental regulators do more to protect us from the consequences of uphill development?
A: Developers regularly give large campaign contributions to members of the General Assembly. In return, the legislature keeps the Georgia Environmental Protection Division understaffed and under funded. The Georgia EPD is staffed by talented, hard working professionals, but there are far too few of them. By bringing private lawsuits against violators, property owners can not only recover for the damage to their property but can also help enforce environmental regulations by making it more costly for developers to violate them.
Q: Won’t the EPA or the state environmental regulators make a developer clean up my property?
A: No. While the regulators will make a developer stop violating the environmental regulations and may fine them for those violations, they often will not require the developer to clean up your property or pay you for the damage to your property.
Q: The county has changed the drainage along a road so that it now runs across my property. You can’t fight city hall. Is there anything I can do?
A: Yes. The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution prohibits the government from taking your property without just compensation. Before they can build a road across your property, they must buy it from you or take it through imminent domain. Either way, they have to pay you. Making changes to drainage plans that cause an increase of water running across your property is akin to the county building a road across your property for that water, and you may be able to recover from the county under a legal theory called “inverse condemnation.”
Q: How much does it cost to pursue a lawsuit against a developer/
A: On case-by-case basis, Huddleston Law Firm will agree to a fee arrangement in which the firm does not recover a fee unless the property owner recovers from the developer. Such cases are sometimes expensive to pursue because they require expert witnesses and many depositions. Huddleston Law Firm often advances those expenses on the client’s behalf and recovers them out of any verdict or settlement.
Disclaimer: Nothing in this Web site is intended to serve as legal advice. You should not act or fail to act upon a claim based upon any information contained on this Web site.
Every case is different, having different circumstances and different facts. No lawyer can tell you how much you will recover, if anything, in any legal action. There are numerous risks involved in all litigation, including the risk of losing the case. What statute of limitation applies to your individual claim depends upon many factors, including the type of claim and the jurisdiction in which it should be filed.
If you believe you have a claim or have legal questions, you should consult with Huddleston Law Firm or another lawyer about your case immediately. No one at Huddleston Law Firm will take any action on your behalf until and unless you enter a written agreement for legal representation. Contacting the firm by phone, in person or by email does not establish or bind you to an agreement for legal representation by Huddleston Law Firm.