If the defendant objects to a taking under Section 1240.510, the defendant has the burden of proof that his property is appropriated to public use. If it is established that the property is appropriated to public use, the plaintiff has the burden of proof that its proposed use satisfies the requirements of Section 1240.510.
§ 1240.520.Burden Proof
Title 7. Eminent Domain Law · Chapter 3. The Right to Take · Article 6. Condemnation for Compatible Use · Enacted 1975 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1240.520 puts the burden on a defendant objecting to a compatible-use taking to prove the property is already appropriated to public use, then shifts the burden to the plaintiff to prove its proposed use satisfies § 1240.510's non-interference requirement.
Full Text of § 1240.520
Plain-English Summary
Compatible-use takings under § 1240.510 come with their own two-step burden of proof. A defendant who objects starts by having to prove the threshold fact: that the property is already appropriated to public use. Without that showing, § 1240.510 has nothing to operate on.
Once the defendant establishes that the property is appropriated to public use, the burden shifts to the plaintiff. The plaintiff then has to prove that its proposed use satisfies § 1240.510's actual requirement, that the new use won't unreasonably interfere with or impair the existing use, now or as it may reasonably develop in the future.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who proves the property is already appropriated to public use in a compatible-use case?
The defendant, if the defendant chooses to object to the taking on that basis.
Once that's established, who proves the new use is compatible?
The plaintiff, who must then prove its proposed use satisfies § 1240.510's requirement that it not unreasonably interfere with or impair the existing use.
What happens if the defendant can't prove the property is appropriated to public use?
Section 1240.510's compatible-use framework doesn't come into play, since that section applies only to property already appropriated to public use.
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: burden of proof compatible use condemnation california