CA Supreme Court Requires Independent Review of Utility Takings

The California Supreme Court has established a higher standard of judicial review for eminent domain actions against privately owned utilities. In Town of Apple Valley v. Apple Valley Ranchos Water, the court held that when a public agency seeks to condemn a private utility, trial courts must independently weigh the evidence to determine if the taking is justified. This ruling sets aside the deferential ‘gross abuse of discretion’ standard that had favored public agencies. The decision materially strengthens the position of private utility owners—including electric, gas, and water companies—by allowing them to more effectively challenge the substantive necessity of a proposed condemnation. Public entities must now prepare a more robust factual record to support their acquisition efforts, as their resolutions of necessity are now subject to a more searching de novo review on the merits at trial. The court distinguished this substantive challenge from a procedural challenge to the resolution's validity, which remains subject to the more deferential standard. The case was remanded for a determination on the use of post-resolution evidence.