Crucial Roles of a Compensation Lawyer in an Acquisition Domain Case
Acquisition gives the Australian government power to acquire property from state or private citizens for any purpose. For instance, the government can acquire private land to build infrastructure or cultivate crops for the public good. Notably, the Land Acquisition Act states that private citizens whose properties have been acquired by the government are entitled to just compensation. Therefore, if the government is interested in your property, you should think about hiring a compensation lawyer. This article highlights ways a compensation lawyer can help you sell your property to the government.
Fair Market Value
One of the essential tenets of the Just Terms Compensation law under the Land Acquisition Act is indemnification of a property owner in money. It means that the government must pay you a fair market value for your property and not a penny less. Accordingly, fair market value refers to the price you would receive when you sell your property willingly and not through coercion. For instance, if you wanted to buy a bigger piece of land and auction the current lot, the auction price would be the fair market value of your property. Therefore, a compensation lawyer will make sure the government pays the fair market value for your property.
Determine Usefulness of Acquisition
Although acquisition gives the government the power to convert private properties to public use, it does not allow it to extinguish the previous owner's title. In fact, the government can only acquire private property for particular purposes that it will benefit from. Therefore, if the government offers to buy your property but the acquisition will not benefit it or citizens, you have a right to challenge the acquisition power. A compensation lawyer can investigate and find out if the government put to good use the property it acquired from you. If investigations reveal that the government does not benefit from the property, your lawyer can sue for additional compensation.
Determine Possible Additional Compensation
Most property owners think that a fair market value for their property is all they are entitled to when they sell to the government. However, nothing can be further from the truth because there is so much involved when the government acquires your property. For instance, if you live on the property, you might incur relocation costs, lost business or income and legal fees. You can only claim the additional expenses by hiring a compensation lawyer since they are conversant with the Land Acquisition Act and acquisition.
Contact a compensation lawyer to learn more.