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Property Rights Curbed by Top U.S. Court in Development Case

  • Kennedy joins court’s liberals in majority in 5-3 decision
  • Wisconsin family objected to rules protecting riverfront
The U.S. Supreme Court stands in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, June 27, 2016. A divided U.S. Supreme Court struck down a Texas law that had threatened to close three-quarters of the states abortion clinics by putting new requirements on facilities and doctors.
Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg
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The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to property-rights advocates Friday, ruling that regulators didn’t violate the Constitution when they refused to allow separate houses on adjoining riverfront lots owned by four siblings.

The justices, voting 5-3, said a Wisconsin state court was right to consider the two lots together in deciding whether building restrictions were so onerous they required the Murr family to be compensated.