Opinion ID: 1773674
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Transportation Cabinet v. Thompson

Text: In 1978, the Transportation Cabinet began condemnation proceedings against Everett and Mary Thompson to acquire over six acres of their land for use in the construction of U.S. 119 in Pike County. In 1983, the parties reached a settlement agreement in which the Thompsons transferred 4.869 acres to the Cabinet in exchange for the property's fair market value of $75,000. In 1988, pursuant to the settlement agreement, the Cabinet notified the Thompsons by letter that a portion of their land had not been used in the construction of U.S. 119 and offered to sell the .89 acre tract back to the Thompsons for its appraised value of $106,000. Mr. Thompson requested that he be advised of his rights regarding the repurchase of his land. The Cabinet responded only by restating the prior offer and Mr. Thompson tendered a deposit on the tract under protest that the Cabinet had not given him the proper right of first refusal, per their agreement, as he was only paid $75,000 for nearly five acres of land ($15,403.57 per acre) in the original condemnation action. After negotiations between the parties broke down, the Cabinet ultimately sold the disputed .89 acre tract to a third party. This cause of action began when the Thompsons filed suit in Pike County Circuit Court in November of 1993 seeking to enjoin the Cabinet from transferring the deed to the third party and to have the property conveyed to them at its fair market value at the time of condemnation, $13,709.18, pursuant to KRS 416.670. The Pike Circuit Court found in favor of the Transportation Cabinet and held that KRS 416.670 could not be applied retroactively to the Thompsons' claim, as the condemnation had occurred before that statute's amendment in 1980. The Court of Appeals reversed and held that KRS 416.670 did give the Thompsons a cause of action. We affirmed the Court of Appeals in Kelly v. Thompson, Ky., 983 S.W.2d 457 (1998), and held that such was not an impermissible retroactive application of that statute, thus giving the Thompsons a right to repurchase their property at the price the Cabinet initially paid for it. We remanded to Pike Circuit Court with instructions to allow the Thompsons to exercise their right of redemption under KRS 416.670. Accordingly, the circuit court directed the Cabinet to sell the land to the Thompsons at the price the Cabinet originally paid for it. The Cabinet appealed and the Court of Appeals affirmed the Pike Circuit Court. This appeal followed. We affirm the Court of Appeals' Opinion for the reasons set forth below.