Evan Seeman concentrates his practice in land use and zoning, real property litigation, and municipal law. He is a member of the firm’s Real Estate + Development Group, and he represents developers, landowners, municipalities, corporations, and advocacy groups.
Land Use – Zoning
Evan advises clients on meeting requirements for land development and coastal management development, and securing the necessary municipal and state permits to do so. He routinely appears before municipal land use agencies and the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP). He also works with planning professionals, and currently serves as the Chair of the Planning and Law Division of the American Planning Association.
Most recently, Evan successfully argued before the Connecticut Appellate Court a zoning appeal involving a planning and zoning commission's issuance of a special permit to a Greenwich, Connecticut food pantry serving those less fortunate. Evan also successfully argued in Superior Court on behalf of the fourth oldest lighthouse in the United States to permit public tours as a legally permitted non-conforming use. Evan previously represented applicants in contested administrative hearings before DEEP hearing officers for coastal development projects and received favorable judgments. He represented a municipality and obtained the dismissal of an injunction action brought by neighboring property owners who were contesting municipal approval of a 130,000-square-foot ground mounted solar array system to generate energy for a local elementary school. He also represented an applicant and obtained dismissal of a zoning appeal challenging the re-zoning and special permit approved for youth baseball fields. Evan has been involved in dozens of administrative appeals.
Real Property Litigation
Evan handles most other real property disputes. He recently represented a commercial landlord in prosecuting action for monetary damages against a Fortune 500 tenant and negotiated a favorable settlement. Evan also represents clients in cases involving inverse condemnation, easements, restrictive covenants, quiet title actions, First Amendment and equal protection issues, landlord/tenant disputes, and real property tax appeals.
Eminent Domain
Evan represents property owners in eminent domain matters, challenging both the condemning authority’s right to take property and the authority’s compensation for the property. He previously served as an affiliate member of the Owners Counsel of America, a national network of condemnation lawyers protecting private property rights. Evan represented a landowner whose plans for a mixed-use development were thwarted when part of his land was condemned by a state agency. He was part of a team that tried the case and obtained nearly double the amount of damages assessed by the agency (almost $400,000 more in damages). He also has experience in advising condemning authorities in the eminent domain process.
More Legal and Business Bylines From Evan J. Seeman
- Federal Court: “There is no pandemic exception to the Constitution of the United States or the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment.” - (Posted On Thursday, May 28, 2020)
- Executive Order to Address Zoning Barriers to Re-opening Restaurants and Retail - (Posted On Friday, May 15, 2020)
- Federal Court: “if beer is ‘essential,’ so is Easter.” - (Posted On Thursday, April 30, 2020)
- Baltimore County’s Zoning Code Found to Violate RLUIPA’s Equal Terms Provision - (Posted On Friday, February 21, 2020)
- Is Finality Still A Requirement For A RLUIPA Action To Be Ripe? - (Posted On Monday, January 13, 2020)
- City of Kirkwood, MO Hits Homerun in Religious Baseball Field Dispute in Eighth Circuit - (Posted On Saturday, December 14, 2019)
- Evangelical Church Sues Castle Hills, TX for Denying SUP for Sunday School Space - (Posted On Monday, December 09, 2019)
- RLUIPA Does Not Apply to Uninsured Amish Roofer Repairing Homeowner’s Damaged Roof - (Posted On Monday, September 23, 2019)
- Fair Housing Act Meets RLUIPA in Georgia - (Posted On Tuesday, August 20, 2019)
- SCOTUS Overrules “State Compensation” Ripeness Requirement for Takings Claims - (Posted On Friday, June 21, 2019)