A moral theory of takings: A fifth amendment issue involving eminent domain

The Fifth Amendment states: "[n]o person...shall [have] private property...taken for public use, without just compensation." Yet, a number of property rights cases indicate that compensation is not always required. By examining a number of central takings cases, this thesis will work to understand this apparent discrepancy and will determine whether traditional conceptions of property, as they relate to issues of invasion and 'the right to exclude', are ethical as applied.