South Carolina Easement and Eminent Domain Laws (2026)

In South Carolina, a prescriptive easement takes 20 years of open, notorious, continuous and uninterrupted use contrary to the owner's rights, proved by clear and convincing evidence, a rule that comes from case law (Simmons v. Berkeley Electric Cooperative, 2016; Bundy v. Shirley, 2015) rather than from the Code. On the eminent domain side, article I, section 13 of the South Carolina Constitution bars condemning private property for any purpose, including economic development, unless the condemnation is for public use, and the Eminent Domain Procedure Act (S.C. Code §§ 28-2-10 to 28-2-510) gives an owner only 30 days after service of a Condemnation Notice to sue over the right to take, or the challenge is treated as waived.

This page covers both halves of South Carolina law: easements between private landowners first, then the government's power to take private property. For other states, see our guide to easement laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-19. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers South Carolina court decisions and statutes on private easements and on the condemnation of private property (S.C. Constitution article I, section 13; the Eminent Domain Procedure Act, Title 28, chapter 2; relocation and reimbursement rules in Title 28, chapter 11). It does not cover adverse possession of title (see South Carolina squatters' rights), HOA covenants, zoning or regulatory takings, federal condemnation (see eminent domain laws by state), or city and county ordinances.

Easements in South Carolina: Mostly Court-Made Law

South Carolina has very little easement legislation. The rules for how an easement arises, how prescription works and how an easement is abandoned come from court decisions. In Bundy v. Shirley (2015), the South Carolina Supreme Court repeated, quoting a 2012 Court of Appeals decision, that "An easement may arise in three ways: (1) by grant; (2) from necessity; and (3) by prescription." Those are the common routes, not the only ones: the Supreme Court has also recognized easements implied from a prior use and from a deed's reference to a plat, covered below.

Express Easements: Writing and Recording

An easement by grant is created by a written instrument. South Carolina's statute of frauds bars an action to charge any person "upon any contract or sale of lands, tenements or hereditaments or any interest in or concerning them" unless the agreement, or some memorandum or note of it, is in writing and signed by the party to be charged (S.C. Code § 32-3-10(4)).

Recording matters for priority. Under S.C. Code § 30-7-10, instruments in writing conveying an interest in real estate that are required by law to be recorded affect later creditors and purchasers for valuable consideration without notice "only from the day and hour when they are recorded" in the register of deeds or clerk of court office of the county where the property lies. Recorded easements are part of the land records described in our guide to South Carolina property records.

Landlocked Property: Easement by Necessity

South Carolina's answer for landlocked land is a court-made easement. In Kennedy v. Bedenbaugh (2002), the South Carolina Supreme Court quoted its 1927 statement that "From the earliest period of our judicial history the acquisition of an easement of right of way over another's land, by necessity, has been clearly recognized and protected," and listed the requirements:

1. Unity of title.
2. Severance of title.
3. Necessity.

How much necessity is required depends on the direction of the claim. The South Carolina Court of Appeals held in Hayes v. Tompkins (1985) that "a grantee claiming an implied easement of necessity over land remaining in the title of the grantor need not prove the right-of-way was absolutely necessary for his enjoyment of the land conveyed. 'Reasonable necessity' will suffice." The court also repeated the rule that the necessity "must exist at the time of the conveyance."

There is no statutory alternative. The road chapters of the South Carolina Code (Title 57, chapters 5, 7, 9 and 17) and the eminent domain chapters (Title 28, chapters 2, 3 and 11) contain no procedure that lets a landlocked owner petition to condemn a private way across a neighbor's land.

Implied Easements: Prior Use and Plats

In Boyd v. BellSouth Telephone & Telegraph Co. (2006), the South Carolina Supreme Court recognized an easement implied by prior use. It held that the party asserting one must establish unity of title, severance of title, a prior use in existence at the time of unity of title that was "not merely temporary or casual" and was "apparent or known to the parties," necessity "in that there could be no other reasonable mode of enjoying the dominant tenement without the prior use," and that "the common grantor indicated an intent to continue the prior use after severance of title."

A plat can also create an easement. In Gooldy v. Storage Center-Platt Springs, LLC (2018), the Supreme Court stated: "Generally, when a deed references a plat that contains an easement, an implied easement arises even though the deed itself is silent."

Prescriptive Easements: The 20-Year Rule

A prescriptive easement is a right to use someone else's land that is earned by long use rather than granted. In Bundy v. Shirley (2015), the South Carolina Supreme Court stated that one must show "(1) continued and uninterrupted use or enjoyment of the right for a period of twenty years; (2) the identity of the thing enjoyed; and (3) use or enjoyment which is either adverse or under claim of right."

In Simmons v. Berkeley Electric Cooperative (2016), the South Carolina Supreme Court simplified that test: "In order to establish a prescriptive easement, the claimant must identify the thing enjoyed, and show his use has been open, notorious, continuous, uninterrupted, and contrary to the true property owner's rights for a period of twenty years."

Two further points shape that test:

• Burden of proof. Bundy held that "a party claiming a prescriptive easement has the burden of proving all elements by clear and convincing evidence," joining the majority of states.
• Adverse use. In Simmons, the South Carolina Supreme Court held that "adverse use and claim of right cannot exist as separate methods of proving the third element of a prescriptive easement as the two terms are, in effect, one and the same." Simmons also quoted Williamson v. Abbott (1917): "[W]hen it appears that claimant has enjoyed an easement openly, notoriously, continuously, and uninterruptedly, in derogation of another's rights, for the full period of 20 years, the use will be presumed to have been adverse."

The 20-year easement period is not the adverse possession period. South Carolina's adverse possession statute, S.C. Code § 15-67-210, treats occupation as subordinate to the legal title unless the premises "have been held and possessed adversely to such legal title for ten years before the commencement of such action." That statute concerns ownership of the land itself; see South Carolina squatters' rights and adverse possession for that topic.

Preventing a Prescriptive Easement

Permission is the rule the cases supply. Bundy explains that under Williamson v. Abbott, "permissive use, which is granted during the claimed twenty-year period, will defeat the establishment of a prescriptive easement," and that "use that is permissive cannot also be adverse or under a claim of right."

South Carolina's limitations and adverse-possession chapters (Title 15, chapters 3 and 67) contain no posted-sign or recorded-notice procedure of the kind some states provide for blocking prescription.

Maintenance and Relocation

In Hayes v. Tompkins (1985), the South Carolina Court of Appeals held that, absent an agreement, the servient owners were "under no duty to maintain and repair the easement," and that "Ordinarily, the owner of an easement has the duty to keep it in repair." Where both owners used the road, the court upheld the trial judge's apportionment of maintenance and repair as equitable.

The Court of Appeals has also stated that an easement's location, "once selected or fixed, cannot be changed by the owner of the servient estate without the express or implied consent of the owner of the dominant estate" (Sheppard v. Justin Enterprises, 2007). In Goodwin v. Johnson (2003), it held that "a court of equity possesses the plenary power to relocate an easement by necessity when the evidence supports such a move," and Sheppard found no indication that South Carolina would extend that approach to easements acquired by express grant.

How an Easement Ends: Abandonment

For an easement created by deed, nonuse is not enough. In Billings v. McDaniel (1950), the South Carolina Supreme Court, quoting its earlier decision in Witt v. Poole, required "some clear and unmistakable affirmative act or series of acts indicating a purpose to repudiate ownership," and explained that "mere nonuser of an easement created by deed for a period however long will not amount to an abandonment, except where otherwise provided by statute, or by the deed itself. There must be in addition other acts by the owner of the dominant estate conclusively manifesting, either a present intent to relinquish the easement, or a purpose inconsistent with its further existence."

Billings concerned an easement created by deed; it does not decide whether an easement acquired by prescription can be lost through nonuse.

Necessity matters too. In Boyd (2006), the Supreme Court stated that "An easement implied by prior use will not be extinguished if the easement is no longer necessary, but an easement by necessity will be extinguished once the necessity ends."

Conservation Easements

South Carolina's conservation easement statute (S.C. Code Title 27, chapter 8) provides that, except as the chapter states otherwise, a conservation easement "may be created, conveyed, recorded, assigned, released, modified, terminated, or otherwise altered or affected in the same manner as other easements and must be recorded in the same manner as other easements" (§ 27-8-30(A)). Except as provided in § 27-8-40(B), a conservation easement "is unlimited in duration unless the instrument creating it provides otherwise" (§ 27-8-30(C)).

Eminent Domain in South Carolina

Eminent domain is the government's power to take private property for public use. This section covers South Carolina's rules; for federal law and other states, see our guide to eminent domain laws by state.

The Takings Clause and Public Use

Article I, section 13(A) of the South Carolina Constitution provides: "Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, private property shall not be taken for private use without the consent of the owner, nor for public use without just compensation being first made for the property. Private property must not be condemned by eminent domain for any purpose or benefit including, but not limited to, the purpose or benefit of economic development, unless the condemnation is for public use."

The clause speaks of property "taken"; unlike some state constitutions, its text contains no "or damaged" wording. Voters approved the economic-development limit at the 2006 general election, and the General Assembly ratified the amendment in 2007 Act No. 15 (ratified April 26, 2007).

The Blight Exception

Section 13(B) creates one exception. "For the limited purpose of the remedy of blight," the General Assembly may provide by law that private property constituting a danger to the safety and health of the community "by reason of lack of ventilation, light, and sanitary facilities, dilapidation, deleterious land use, or any combination of these factors" may be condemned without the owner's consent "and put to a public use or private use if just compensation is first made for the property."

In Kelo v. City of New London (2005), the U.S. Supreme Court held that takings under an economic development plan that "unquestionably serves a public purpose" satisfy the Fifth Amendment's public use requirement, while emphasizing that "nothing in our opinion precludes any State from placing further restrictions on its exercise of the takings power." Federal law also conditions federal financial assistance for a state agency's acquisitions on assurances that they will be guided, "to the greatest extent practicable under State law," by the federal land acquisition policies (42 U.S.C. § 4655). The national eminent domain guide covers the federal layer in full.

Who May Condemn and the Exclusive Procedure

Under S.C. Code § 28-2-60, "A condemnor may commence an action under this chapter for the acquisition of an interest in any real property necessary for any public purpose. The provisions of this chapter shall constitute the exclusive procedure whereby condemnation may be undertaken in this State."

The Act defines "property" to include "easements and hereditaments" and every estate, interest and right in land (§ 28-2-30(17)), and a "condemnee" is anyone who "has a record interest in or holds actual possession of" the property (§ 28-2-30(6)). A recorded easement can therefore itself be condemned, and its holder is a party.

Pipelines. Under current S.C. Code § 58-7-10(A), pipeline companies that meet the statute's incorporation conditions hold "all the rights, powers, and privileges" conferred on telegraph and telephone companies under Title 58, chapter 9, article 17, which include condemnation when the company and the owner cannot agree on compensation (§ 58-9-2030). Any condemnation must still be for public use (S.C. Const. art. I, § 13(A)). A 2022 act (Act No. 144, H.3524) added subsection (B) to S.C. Code § 58-7-10, providing that "The provisions of Section 58-9-2030 and of Chapter 2, Title 28 do not apply to private, for-profit pipeline companies, including publicly traded for-profit companies, that are not defined within this title as a public utility." The act also provided that subsection (B) "is repealed June 30, 2024, unless the General Assembly amends the language of Section 58-7-10(B) or it is reenacted or otherwise extended by the General Assembly before June 30, 2024." The current text of § 58-7-10 carries only subsection (A). S. 689 (2025-2026 session) would add a new § 58-7-10(B) stating that "The provisions of this section and of Chapter 2, Title 28" do not apply to private, for-profit pipeline companies that are not public utilities. It was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee on January 13, 2026, and is a pending bill, not law.

Before Filing: Appraisal and Negotiation

Section 28-2-70 requires the condemnor, before starting a condemnation action, to "cause the property to be appraised to determine the amount that would constitute just compensation for its taking" and to "make the appraisal available to the landowner." The condemnor and landowner "shall make reasonable and diligent efforts to negotiate an agreement upon the amount of compensation to be paid." The same section states that a party's failure to comply with the negotiation subsection "is not a defense to a condemnation action."

The Condemnation Notice and the Deadlines That Follow

Before filing, the condemnor must elect to proceed either to a trial on compensation (§ 28-2-240) or through an appraisal panel (§ 28-2-250) (§ 28-2-220(A)). Under the panel route, the landowner has until the 30th day after service of the Condemnation Notice to appoint one panel member; if the landowner does not, the clerk of court appoints one at the condemnor's request (§ 28-2-250(C), (D)). A trial on compensation is placed on the jury roster unless both sides demand a trial by the court (§ 28-2-310(B)), and the statutory notice states, "The landowner has the right to demand a trial by jury" (§ 28-2-280(C)(8)). The South Carolina Supreme Court has held that this jury right comes from statute, not the constitution (Cobb v. South Carolina Department of Transportation, 2005).

The deadlines in the Act are short, and missing them has consequences:

The details:

• Responding to the offer. "The landowner has thirty days after service of the Condemnation Notice to give the condemnor written notice either that he rejects the amount tendered, or that he accepts the amount tendered." Under § 28-2-220(C), "A failure to respond to the tender constitutes a rejection."
• Challenging the right to take. Under § 28-2-470, an action challenging the condemnor's right to condemn "must be commenced in separate proceedings filed in the court of common pleas in the county in which the property or a portion thereof is located" and "within thirty days after service of the Condemnation Notice upon the landowner." Proceedings under the notice are automatically stayed until that action is decided, unless the landowner and condemnor consent otherwise, and "No issues involving the condemnor's right to condemn may be heard in the trial upon the issue of just compensation." The Condemnation Notice the Act prescribes warns that if the action is not started within those 30 days, "THE LANDOWNER WILL BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE WAIVED THE CHALLENGE" (§ 28-2-280(C)(7)).
• Appraisal panel results. If the condemnor gives notice that it accepts an appraisal panel's determination, the landowner has 30 days from receipt of that notice to elect in writing to accept the amount or appeal, and "A failure to elect constitutes an acceptance of the amount so determined" (§ 28-2-260(C)). The required notice adds that a failure to elect within the 30 days is an acceptance "AND A WAIVER OF THE RIGHT TO APPEAL" (§ 28-2-290).
• Trial timing. The case may not be called for trial until at least 60 days after service of the Condemnation Notice in a trial-route case, or of the Notice of Appeal in a panel-route case, unless both sides agree to a shorter period (§ 28-2-310(D)).

Possession, Deposits and the Withdrawal Trap

Section 28-2-90 lists the ways a condemnor may take possession, including upon deposit with the clerk of court of the amount stated in the Condemnation Notice as just compensation. Once the condemnor has taken possession, it "may not abandon the condemnation action after taking possession if material alterations have been made in the property, except with consent of the landowner" (§ 28-2-230(B)).

Under § 28-2-480, after the condemnor has taken possession and when the right to take is not contested, all named condemnees may apply in writing to the clerk of court for up to 50 percent of the funds the condemnor deposited. The amount deposited or withdrawn "is not admissible in evidence and may not be referred to at the trial" (§ 28-2-500). Withdrawing money has a cost: under § 28-2-490, "Each condemnee who withdraws money under SECTION 28-2-480 waives all objections and defenses to the action and to the taking of his property, except for any claim to greater compensation."

How Compensation Is Measured

• What counts. "In determining just compensation, only the value of the property to be taken, any diminution in the value of the landowner's remaining property, and any benefits as provided in SECTION 28-2-360 may be considered" (§ 28-2-370). In a partial taking, the loss in value of the remainder is part of the measure.
• Value created by the project is excluded. The award "may not be increased by reason of any increases in the value of the property resulting from the placement of a public works project on it" (§ 28-2-350).
• Valuation date. "In all condemnation actions, the date of valuation is the date of the filing of the Condemnation Notice" (§ 28-2-440).
• Project benefits are offset. Under § 28-2-360, "benefits to be derived from the proposed project including the value of any property or rights relinquished or reverting to the landowner as a part or result thereof, must be taken into consideration in determining the amount of compensation and due allowance made for them."
• Interest. Section 28-2-420(A) requires interest at 8 percent a year on sums found to be just compensation by an appraisal panel or a court, from the filing of the Condemnation Notice through the verdict or judgment. Interest earned on funds deposited with the clerk is offset against it, no interest accrues during the 20 days after the verdict or judgment, and a judgment not paid within those 20 days then bears the statutory judgment rate.
• Mortgage prepayment penalties. The condemnor must pay or reimburse penalty costs for prepaying debt secured by a preexisting lien created in good faith, except where federal law preempts (§ 28-2-110(A)).
• No home bonus. The Eminent Domain Procedure Act (§§ 28-2-10 to 28-2-510) contains no percentage bonus for a taken home and no clause compensating business goodwill or lost profits; § 28-2-370 limits what may be considered.

Attorney Fees, Litigation Expenses and Relocation Payments

Section 28-2-510 sets these fee rules. "Litigation expenses" count from service of the Condemnation Notice and include reasonable attorney's, appraisal and engineering fees (§ 28-2-30(14)).

• Right-to-take challenge. If the court finds the condemnor has no right to take all or part of the property, the landowner's reasonable costs and litigation expenses "must be awarded to the landowner." If the court finds the challenge "was not raised and litigated in good faith by the landowner," it must award the condemnor its reasonable costs and litigation expenses (§ 28-2-510(A)).
• Prevailing at trial. "A landowner who prevails in the trial of a condemnation action, in addition to his compensation for the property, may recover his reasonable litigation expenses by serving on the condemnor and filing with the clerk of court an application therefor within fifteen days after the entry of the judgment." An owner "prevails" when "the compensation awarded (other than by settlement) for the property, exclusive of interest, is at least as close to the highest valuation of the property that is attested to at trial on behalf of the landowner as it is to the highest valuation of the property that is attested to at trial on behalf of the condemnor" (§ 28-2-510(B)(2)). The 15-day application window is short.
• Reduction or denial. The court may reduce or deny an award under the section to the extent the landowner "engaged in conduct which unduly and unreasonably protracted the final resolution of the action or to the extent the court finds that the position of the condemnor was substantially justified or that special circumstances make an award unjust" (§ 28-2-510(B)(1)).
• Abandonment or withdrawal. "If the condemnor abandons or withdraws the condemnation action in the manner authorized by this chapter, the condemnee is entitled to reasonable attorney fees, litigation expenses, and costs as determined by the court" (§ 28-2-510(C)).

Title 28, chapter 11 requires state and local agencies involved in public projects to make the relocation payments the federal Uniform Relocation Act makes a condition of federal aid to displaced persons, "whether the program or project is federally aided or not" (§ 28-11-10). That section sets no dollar amounts of its own; the national eminent domain guide covers the federal payments. Section 28-11-30(1) provides for reimbursing an owner, to the extent the State deems fair and reasonable, for recording fees and transfer taxes, mortgage prepayment penalties and prorated real property taxes. Where the condemnation fails in court or is abandoned, the owner is paid a sum that, in the agency's opinion, reimburses reasonable attorney, appraisal and engineering fees actually incurred (§ 28-11-30(2)). The chapter does not create an element of damages in the condemnation case (§ 28-11-70).

Where an owner brings an inverse condemnation proceeding because of the use of the property in a public program or project, and wins a judgment awarding compensation or settles, the court (or, in a settlement, the agency's attorney) must award or allow a sum that, in its opinion, reimburses the owner's "reasonable costs, disbursements, and expenses, including reasonable attorney, appraisal, and engineering fees actually incurred because of the proceeding" (§ 28-11-30(3)). For transportation projects, reestablishment expenses for moving a small business, farm or nonprofit organization "may be paid in an amount up to fifty thousand dollars, notwithstanding a lower limitation imposed by federal regulations" (§ 28-11-30(4)).

Inverse Condemnation

An owner whose property is taken without a condemnation action may sue for compensation (inverse condemnation). In Cutchin v. South Carolina Department of Highways and Public Transportation (1990), the South Carolina Supreme Court applied the general limitations statute, S.C. Code § 15-3-530, to such a claim. Cutchin applied the six-year period then in force; § 15-3-530 now sets three years, and the Code notes the period "was reduced from 6 to 3 years in 1988." Where the cause of the injury is abatable, "each injury gives rise to a new cause of action which may be commenced within the applicable limitations period" (Cutchin). The statutory right to a jury trial on compensation "applies as well in inverse condemnation actions" (Cobb, 2005). For other South Carolina limitation periods, see South Carolina statute of limitations.

Repurchase of Unused Land

The Eminent Domain Procedure Act (§§ 28-2-10 to 28-2-510) contains no right for a former owner to repurchase, or to get a first refusal on, condemned land that goes unused.

South Carolina Easement and Eminent Domain Rules at a Glance

Related South Carolina Property Guides

• Easement laws by state
• Eminent domain laws by state
• South Carolina squatters' rights and adverse possession
• South Carolina property records
• North Carolina easement and eminent domain laws
• Georgia easement and eminent domain laws

Disclaimer: This article provides general legal information about South Carolina easement and eminent domain law. It is not legal advice. For a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in South Carolina or the public agency involved.

Last updated: 2026-10-19.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to get a prescriptive easement in South Carolina?

Twenty years. The South Carolina Supreme Court requires the claimant to identify the thing enjoyed and show use that is open, notorious, continuous, uninterrupted and contrary to the owner's rights for twenty years, all proved by clear and convincing evidence (Simmons v. Berkeley Electric Cooperative, 2016; Bundy v. Shirley, 2015).

Is a prescriptive easement the same as adverse possession in South Carolina?

No. A prescriptive easement is a right to use another person's land and takes 20 years under case law. Adverse possession of title is governed by a separate statute that refers to ten years of adverse holding (S.C. Code § 15-67-210).

What if my land is landlocked in South Carolina?

South Carolina's route is the court-made easement by necessity, which requires unity of title, severance of title and necessity (Kennedy v. Bedenbaugh, 2002). The road chapters of Title 57 and the eminent domain chapters of Title 28 contain no procedure for a landlocked owner to condemn a private way. The Supreme Court has also recognized easements implied by prior use (Boyd v. BellSouth, 2006) and by a deed that references a plat showing an easement (Gooldy v. Storage Center-Platt Springs, 2018).

How do you stop someone from getting a prescriptive easement in South Carolina?

Under Bundy v. Shirley (2015), permission granted during the claimed 20-year period defeats a prescriptive easement, because permissive use cannot be adverse. South Carolina's limitations and adverse-possession chapters (Title 15, chapters 3 and 67) contain no posted-sign or recorded-notice procedure for this.

Can an easement be lost by not using it in South Carolina?

For an easement created by deed, the South Carolina Supreme Court has held that mere nonuse for any length of time does not amount to abandonment unless a statute or the deed provides otherwise; there must also be acts showing an intent to give up the easement or a purpose inconsistent with it (Billings v. McDaniel, 1950).

Can South Carolina take my property for a private developer?

The state constitution bars condemning private property for any purpose or benefit, including economic development, unless the condemnation is for public use (S.C. Const. art. I, § 13(A)). For the limited purpose of remedying blight, the General Assembly may provide by law for condemning property that endangers community safety and health and putting it to a public or private use, with just compensation first made (art. I, § 13(B)).

How long do I have to challenge an eminent domain taking in South Carolina?

An action challenging the condemnor's right to condemn must be filed as a separate proceeding in the court of common pleas within 30 days after service of the Condemnation Notice (S.C. Code § 28-2-470); otherwise the landowner is considered to have waived the challenge (§ 28-2-280(C)(7)). The right to take cannot be argued at the trial on just compensation.

How is just compensation calculated in South Carolina?

Only the value of the property taken, any loss in value of the owner's remaining property, and project benefits may be considered (S.C. Code § 28-2-370). Value is set as of the date the Condemnation Notice is filed (§ 28-2-440), benefits from the proposed project must be allowed for (§ 28-2-360), and value the project itself adds is excluded (§ 28-2-350). Interest at 8 percent a year runs on sums an appraisal panel or court finds to be just compensation from the filing of the notice through verdict or judgment, offset by interest earned on the deposit, with no interest for 20 days after the verdict or judgment and the judgment rate after that if unpaid (§ 28-2-420(A)).

Does the condemnor pay attorney fees in South Carolina eminent domain cases?

In some cases. A landowner who wins a right-to-take challenge must be awarded reasonable costs and litigation expenses, but a landowner whose challenge was not raised and litigated in good faith must pay the condemnor's (S.C. Code § 28-2-510(A)). A landowner who prevails at trial, meaning the award is at least as close to the landowner's highest valuation at trial as to the condemnor's, may recover reasonable litigation expenses by applying within 15 days after judgment, and a condemnee is entitled to reasonable attorney fees, litigation expenses and costs if the condemnor abandons or withdraws the action (§ 28-2-510(B), (C)). The court may reduce or deny an award for conduct that unduly protracted the case, or where the condemnor's position was substantially justified or special circumstances make an award unjust (§ 28-2-510(B)(1)). Section 28-11-30(3) separately provides for reimbursing reasonable attorney, appraisal and engineering fees when an owner wins a judgment or settles an inverse condemnation proceeding brought because of the use of the property in a public program or project.

Can a pipeline company use eminent domain in South Carolina?

Under current S.C. Code § 58-7-10(A), pipeline companies that meet the statute's incorporation conditions hold the rights of telegraph and telephone companies under Title 58, chapter 9, article 17, which include condemnation (§ 58-9-2030); any condemnation must still be for public use (S.C. Const. art. I, § 13(A)). A 2022 act added § 58-7-10(B), which made § 58-9-2030 and the Eminent Domain Procedure Act inapplicable to private, for-profit pipeline companies that are not public utilities, but that subsection was repealed on June 30, 2024 under the act's sunset clause. S. 689, a 2025-2026 Senate bill that would add a similar carve-out, is pending in the Senate Judiciary Committee and is not law.