What happens if the landowner does not want to accept the condemning authority’s initial offer to purchase the property?
Assuming the offer is rejected, the Condemnor will file a lawsuit against the landowner in order to acquire the property rights it seeks. In Texas, the document the Condemnor uses to initiate the lawsuit is called an “Original Petition.” Texas law requires the Original Petition to be filed in the county where the property is located. Rather than immediately launch into full-scale litigation, the next step in the Texas condemnation process is for the parties to conduct a special commissioners’ hearing, which is usually presided over by three court-appointed commissioners. The special commissioners must be disinterested property owners who reside in the county where the condemnation takes place. Interestingly, the commissioners in most cases have no legal background or training, yet Texas law gives them considerable power to make an initial determination of the value of the condemned property. The burden generally falls to the Condemnor to coordinate with the commissioners to set up the
