A
taking is an action by a
government depriving a person of private property without the payment of just compensation. A government could effect this taking in several ways including:
- physically occupying it and preventing others to enter upon it;
- exercising the power of eminent domain; and
- regulating its use to such a degree that no longer has any economically viable use (a regulatory taking).
In the United States, takings are forbidden by the Fifth Amendment.