Bona Law’s Aaron Gott Discusses Minnesota Property Rights Case on AM 1280
June 1, 2020
Bona Law attorney Aaron Gott discussed a recent Minnesota Supreme Court case challenging the validity of a Minnesota city’s ordinance restricting homeowners from renting out their properties on “Where You Live” with Gene Sullivan on Minnesota’s AM 1280 radio station May 7, 2016.
The City of Winona, Minnesota enacted an ordinance that capped the number rental licenses on each residential block to thirty-percent of the houses on a given block. Four homeowners, represented by libertarian public-interest law firm the Institute for Justice, filed suit challenging the ordinance under Minnesota statutory law and the Minnesota Constitution’s equal protection and due process clauses.
Bona Law filed an amicus brief in the case arguing that the rental restrictions were invalid under the Minnesota Municipal Planning Act because the ordinance was a zoning ordinance that impermissibly regulated users of property—i.e., renters vs. owners—instead of uses of property—i.e., residential. Moreover, the brief argued the ban was an invalid restraint on alienation that deprived homeowners of the right to dispose of their property.
You can learn more about Bona Law’s Real-Estate Litigation Practice here.
You can listen to the entire interview here.