If any provision or clause of this title or application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the title that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this title are severable.
§ 1235.070.Severability of Provisions
Title 7. Eminent Domain Law · Chapter 2. Principles of Construction; Definitions · Article 1. Construction · Enacted 1975 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1235.070 builds a severability clause into the Eminent Domain Law, so that if any provision or application of the title is held invalid, every other provision or application that can stand on its own remains in force.
Full Text of § 1235.070
Plain-English Summary
A single invalid provision doesn't have to bring down an entire title. Section 1235.070 says that if any provision or clause of this title, or its application to some person or set of circumstances, is held invalid, that holding doesn't affect any other provision or application that can still be given effect without the invalid part.
The section makes its intent explicit: "to this end the provisions of this title are severable." That phrase signals that the Legislature wanted the Eminent Domain Law to survive a partial invalidation, with only the specific defective provision or application removed rather than the surrounding structure collapsing along with it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if a court finds one provision of the Eminent Domain Law unconstitutional?
Section 1235.070 keeps the rest of the title intact -- only the invalid provision or application is affected, and everything else that can operate independently remains in force.
Does this severability clause apply to how a provision is applied, or only to the text of the provision itself?
Both. It covers a provision or clause held invalid on its face, and also an application of a provision to particular persons or circumstances that's held invalid while the provision itself remains valid elsewhere.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1975, Ch. 1275.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: severability clause california eminent domain law