Langenegger v. United States

OPINION

KOZINSKI, Chief Judge.

This unusual case presents the question whether the United States must compensate American landowners for the loss suffered when their land is expropriated by a foreign government pursuant to its land reform program.

Facts

Plaintiffs are U.S. citizens each of whom owned an interest in Las Lahas, a large coffee plantation located in El Salvador. On October 15,1979, a group of Salvadoran military officers ousted the country’s existing government and established a “Revolutionary Junta of Government.” The Junta declared its intent to enact a program of economic,…