1. An owner of property described in an application for condemnation may bring an action challenging the exercise of eminent domain authority or the condemnation proceedings. Such action shall be commenced within thirty days after service of notice of assessment pursuant to section 6B.8 by the filing of a petition in district court. Service of the original notice upon the acquiring agency shall be as required in the rules of civil procedure. In addition to the owner of the property, a contract purchaser of record of the property or a tenant occupying the property under a recorded lease shall also have standing to bring such action.
2. An acquiring agency that proposes to acquire property by eminent domain may file a petition in district court seeking a determination and declaration that its finding of public use, public purpose, or public improvement necessary to support the taking meets the definition of those terms. The action shall be commenced by the filing of a petition identifying all property owners whose property is proposed to be acquired, any contract purchaser of record of the property, and any tenant known to be occupying the property, and including a description of the properties proposed to be acquired and a statement of the public use, public purpose, or public improvement supporting the acquisition of the property by eminent domain. The original notice shall be served as required by the rules of civil procedure on each property owner named in the petition and on any contract purchaser of record of the property and on any tenant occupying the property under a recorded lease. Such action may be commenced by an acquiring agency at any time prior to the filing of an application for condemnation pursuant to section 6B.3.
3. For any action brought under this section, the burden of proof shall be on the acquiring agency to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the finding of public use, public purpose, or public improvement meets the definition of those terms. If a property owner or a contract purchaser of record or a tenant occupying the property under a recorded lease prevails in an action brought under this section, the acquiring agency shall be required to pay the costs, including reasonable attorney fees, of the adverse party. 2006 Acts, 1st Ex, ch 1001, §5, 49 Referred to in §6A.22, 6B.3A Manner of service, R.C.P. 1.302 – 1.315\n\nTue Dec 09 22:34:39 2025 Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 6A (27, 1) \n
Notes of Decisions
Clarke Cnty. Reservoir Comm'n v. Linda Sue Abbott, 862 N.W.2d 166 (Iowa 2015).
· cites it 54× “See Iowa Code § 6A.24. This provision permits an “acquiring agency” to petition the court for a ruling that the proposed taking of private property is for a “public use, public purpose, or public improvement”: An acquiring agency that proposes to acquire property by eminent…”
Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. the Iowa Dep't of Transp., 891 N.W.2d 220 (Iowa 2017).
· cites it 21× “We hold the district court was without authority to hear the case because the landowner failed to file an action within thirty days from the notice of assessment as required by Iowa Code section 6A.24(1) (2014) contesting the IDOT’s exercise of eminent domain when the IDOT did…”
Amended June 22, 2015 Clarke Cnty. Reservoir Comm'n v. Linda Sue Abbott (Iowa 2015).
· cites it 27× “See Iowa Code § 6A.24. This provision permits an “acquiring agency” to petition the court for a ruling that the proposed taking of private property is for a “public use, public purpose, or public improvement”: An acquiring agency that proposes to acquire property by eminent…”
Castle Gate Homeowners' Ass'n v. K & L Props., LLC (Iowa Ct. App. 2023).
· cites it 15× “3A allows a property owner described in a condemnation application to bring an action for judicial review under Iowa Code section 6A.24 “to challenge the exercise of eminent domain authority or the condemnation proceedings.”
City of Tiffin v. Tat, LLC (Iowa Ct. App. 2021).
· cites it 5× “§ 6A.24(1). They pointed out that DERS and TAT had a common owner, Andersen, and he began obtaining property in Tiffin for the purpose of establishing the mixed-use development.”
Weinman v. City of North Liberty (Iowa Ct. App. 2018).
· cites it 4× “” Less than two weeks later, Weinman filed a second petition challenging the city’s eminent domain authority under Iowa Code section 6A.24 and again seeking a temporary injunction.”
Ruth E. Rarick Trust v. City of Tiffin, Iowa (Iowa Ct. App. 2021).
· cites it 4× “The district court concluded that the Trust’s possibility of reverter is a property interest of sufficient dignity to provide the Trust “a right to bring an action” under section 6A.24, which authorizes “[a]n owner of property described in an application for condemnation” to…”
— Iowa Code § 6A.24(1) — 9 cases
Johnson Propane, Heating & Cooling, Inc. v. the Iowa Dep't of Transp., 891 N.W.2d 220 (Iowa 2017).
“We hold the district court was without authority to hear the case because the landowner failed to file an action within thirty days from the notice of assessment as required by Iowa Code section 6A.24(1) (2014) contesting the IDOT’s exercise of eminent domain when the IDOT did…”
Castle Gate Homeowners' Ass'n v. K & L Props., LLC (Iowa Ct. App. 2023).
“3A allows a property owner described in a condemnation application to bring an action for judicial review under Iowa Code section 6A.24 “to challenge the exercise of eminent domain authority or the condemnation proceedings.”
— Iowa Code § 6A.24(2) — 3 cases
Clarke Cnty. Reservoir Comm'n v. Linda Sue Abbott, 862 N.W.2d 166 (Iowa 2015).
“See Iowa Code § 6A.24. This provision permits an “acquiring agency” to petition the court for a ruling that the proposed taking of private property is for a “public use, public purpose, or public improvement”: An acquiring agency that proposes to acquire property by eminent…”
Amended June 22, 2015 Clarke Cnty. Reservoir Comm'n v. Linda Sue Abbott (Iowa 2015).
“See Iowa Code § 6A.24. This provision permits an “acquiring agency” to petition the court for a ruling that the proposed taking of private property is for a “public use, public purpose, or public improvement”: An acquiring agency that proposes to acquire property by eminent…”
City of Tiffin v. Tat, LLC (Iowa Ct. App. 2021).
“§ 6A.24(1). They pointed out that DERS and TAT had a common owner, Andersen, and he began obtaining property in Tiffin for the purpose of establishing the mixed-use development.”
— Iowa Code § 6A.24(3) — 4 cases
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.