Power, proceeding, and the owner's suit
Three words get swapped on the exam. Eminent domain is the power to take private property for public use. Condemnation is the proceeding by which government exercises it. Inverse condemnation is the action an owner brings against the government for compensation when government action has effectively taken or damaged property without a formal proceeding, as when a drainage project floods the land. Neither is police power, which regulates without acquiring, nor escheat, which needs a death without will or heirs.
Georgia rejected Kelo
Kelo v. City of New London (2005) allowed economic-development takings federally. Georgia rule: the 2006 Landowner's Bill of Rights provides that the public benefit of economic development shall not constitute a public use; public use is a question of law for the court, with the burden on the condemnor.
So a Georgia city may not condemn homes for a private developer, and paying fair market value plus relocation costs cannot cure a missing public use. Do not overcorrect: cities, counties, housing authorities and utilities are all listed condemnors.
When value is measured, and when it is paid
Georgia rule: compensation is measured as of the date of taking, not the date the taking was announced — the announcement is what an owner notices first, which is what makes it tempting. The Georgia Constitution requires compensation be first paid; the statute lets the condemnor instead deposit into court not less than its appraisal of fair market value. Payment comes before the owner must surrender possession, not after and not at the end of an appeal.
The escheat timeline
If no heir appears within 4 years of the grant of letters on an intestate estate, the personal representative petitions the probate court. The court issues a citation giving heirs at least 60 days to object, with notice by publication; if no one objects, the property goes to the county board of education. Letters granted March 1, 2022 put the petition at March 1, 2026. The 5-year figure candidates mix in here is the deadline for putting condemned property to public use.