Most people know better than to keep their neighbors up all night with rowdy reveling.
But there are always some people who believe their right to party is greater than their neighbor's right to peace and quiet. The same is true when it comes to land. Thou-sands of communities have developed zoning rules to protect residents from the effects of sprawl, such as storm water flooding and traffic congestion, and to conserve valuable trees and green space. Yet a growing number of real estate speculators have been trying hard in the past decade to thwart local land use rules with lawsuits in which they claim their right to make a profit on their plots is superior to the community's right to protect wildlife, woods, wetlands, and people. The courts, in turn, have largely told them to go home and grow up.