Eminent Domain in Mississippi: The Property Owner’s Guide

Mississippi built a court that exists for one purpose, deciding what your property is worth, and it protected your right to a jury in it even after you have taken the condemnor’s money.

The law that governs takings in Mississippi

Mississippi’s eminent domain law is codified at Title 11, Chapter 27 of the Mississippi Code, sections 11-27-1 through 11-27-91. Section 11-27-1 addresses the exercise of the right to condemn private property for public use. Section 11-27-3 creates a special court of eminent domain, consisting of a judge, jury, and such other officers and personnel as the chapter sets out, with the jurisdiction and powers the chapter enumerates. Section 11-27-89 addresses compensation of appraisers and the right to a jury trial.

Mississippi voters approved Initiative 31 in November 2011 by roughly 73 percent, amending the state constitution to prohibit government from taking private property by eminent domain and transferring it to other private entities. The Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation sponsored and led the two-year initiative campaign. In April 2022 the governor signed House Bill 1769, which codified the constitutional amendment into general law.

Who can take property in Mississippi

The Mississippi Department of Transportation, counties, municipalities, school districts, drainage and levee districts, port and airport authorities, and utilities including electric, gas, and pipeline companies hold condemnation authority. Because Mississippi routes essentially all condemnation through the special court, the procedure is consistent across condemnors, and the practical variables are the identity of the taker, the scope of what it wants, and the quality of the valuation evidence.

The condemnation process in Mississippi, step by step

The complaint is filed with the circuit clerk, assigned a number, and placed on the docket as other pleadings are in circuit court or county court. The matter is then heard in the special court of eminent domain, which may sit in either county court or circuit court depending on the county.

The special court determines the fair market value of the property to be condemned and the damages, if any, to the remainder if less than the whole is taken. Every party has the right to appeal directly to the Mississippi Supreme Court from the judgment entered in the special court, whether tried in county court or circuit court, by giving notice within ten days from the date of the judgment or final order to the court reporter to transcribe the record and by prepaying all costs that may be adjudged against the appealing party.

Possession and deposits

Mississippi allows the condemnor to deposit its estimate and proceed. The statute protects the owner’s core right in doing so: the making of a deposit by the plaintiff, or the withdrawal of that deposit by the defendant, does not prejudice the right of any party to a trial by jury in the special court of eminent domain to determine the fair market value of the property to be condemned and the damages, if any, to the remainder if less than the whole is taken.

That protection is worth understanding precisely, because in many states taking the money is where owners inadvertently give up leverage. In Mississippi the statute says otherwise. Even so, the mechanics of withdrawal should be handled with counsel so that nothing else in the paperwork works a waiver.

What just compensation includes in Mississippi

Mississippi compensates the fair market value of the property taken plus damages to the remainder where less than the whole is taken, which is the measure the special court is charged with determining.

On Mississippi’s agricultural and timber ground, remainder damage is frequently about access and operations rather than acreage. A corridor that divides a tract can cut off access to a back field or timber stand, interfere with equipment movement and irrigation, complicate drainage, and leave fragments that are uneconomic to work. On commercial frontage the recurring issues are access, parking, and sight lines. All of it is compensable through the effect on the remainder’s value.

Mississippi does not provide a broad statutory right to recover lost business profits as a separate item of condemnation damages. Business impacts are generally established through their effect on real property value, so an operating business should ensure its appraiser understands the site before a valuation is issued.

Relocation assistance and moving costs

Federally assisted projects, including most Mississippi Department of Transportation work, trigger the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act. Relocation benefits pay moving costs, business reestablishment expenses, and replacement housing supplements, and they are administered separately from the compensation owed for the property. Accepting relocation assistance does not affect your right to a jury determination of value in the special court.

Deadlines that protect your rights in Mississippi

Ten days from the date of the judgment or final order is the window to give notice to the court reporter to transcribe the record for an appeal to the Mississippi Supreme Court, along with prepayment of costs that may be adjudged against the appealing party. Ten days is short, and it runs from entry of judgment rather than from receipt of notice.

Before that, the deadlines that bind you are the ones set in the special court proceeding, particularly the dates governing appraisal disclosure and expert testimony. Missing an expert deadline in Mississippi has the same effect it has everywhere: you arrive at the jury trial the statute guarantees you with only the condemnor’s valuation in evidence.

How to fight a taking in Mississippi

Initiative 31 and its 2022 codification give Mississippi owners a strong constitutional argument. The amendment restricts government from taking private property by eminent domain and transferring it to other private entities, and it was adopted by voters rather than legislators, which limits how readily it can be narrowed. Where the eventual user of your property is a private company, that is the starting point.

Necessity and the scope of a taking remain contestable in the special court, and easement terms often carry more long-term value than the price. Width, permitted surface uses, access during construction, depth of cover on a buried line, and restoration of soil profile and drainage all affect the property for as long as you own it, and those terms are usually more movable than the appraised figure.

Before you sign anything

The condemnor’s offer rests on an appraisal it commissioned, using its assumptions about access, drainage, and highest and best use. Read the appraisal itself. Mississippi preserves your right to a jury in the special court even after a deposit is made and withdrawn, so there is rarely a reason to accept a number you have not tested. A signed deed or settlement release, by contrast, ends every claim in the case, including remainder damages that will not be apparent until the project is built.

Frequently asked questions

What is the special court of eminent domain in Mississippi?

It is a court created by Mississippi Code section 11-27-3, consisting of a judge, a jury, and such other officers and personnel as the chapter provides, with the jurisdiction and powers the chapter enumerates. Complaints are filed with the circuit clerk and docketed as other pleadings in circuit court or county court, and the special court determines fair market value and damages to the remainder.

If I take the deposit, do I lose my right to a jury in Mississippi?

No. The statute provides that the making of a deposit by the plaintiff, or the withdrawal of that deposit by the defendant, does not prejudice the right of any party to a trial by jury in the special court of eminent domain to determine the fair market value of the property and the damages, if any, to the remainder if less than the whole is taken.

How do I appeal a Mississippi eminent domain judgment?

Every party has the right to appeal directly to the Mississippi Supreme Court from the judgment entered in the special court, whether the case was tried in county court or circuit court, by giving notice within ten days from the date of the judgment or final order to the court reporter to transcribe the record, and by prepaying all costs that may be adjudged against the appealing party.

What did Initiative 31 do in Mississippi?

Approved by roughly 73 percent of voters in November 2011, Initiative 31 amended the Mississippi Constitution to prohibit government from taking private property by eminent domain and transferring it to other private entities. The Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation led the campaign, and House Bill 1769, signed in April 2022, codified the amendment into general law.

Where is Mississippi’s eminent domain law found?

Title 11, Chapter 27 of the Mississippi Code, sections 11-27-1 through 11-27-91. Section 11-27-1 addresses the right to condemn for public use, section 11-27-3 creates the special court of eminent domain, and section 11-27-89 addresses compensation of appraisers and the right to a jury trial.