In New York,the eminent domain laws require that compensation be made to a business tenant for the loss of its compensable trade fixtures in a separate condemnation award. A business tenant is entitled to receive compensation for its “chattel” (i.e., any machinery, equipment, and/or other legally compensable installations that are used for its business purposes) separately from any compensation offered to the landlord/owner of the property for the seizure of their real estate. See Eminent Domain Procedure Law (the “EDPL”) §504 (c); Rose v. State of New York, 24 N.Y.2d 80 (1969).

Before being entitled to any payment, however, a trade fixture claimant must first prove that each item being claimed on its trade fixture inventory (filed in court as part of its eminent domain claim) is actually a compensable trade fixture under the law.