Constitutional Law
May 27, 2026
Church v. State: A takings conundrum
A rare church-state showdown is brewing at Mount Cristo Rey, where the federal government's bid to seize Catholic Church land for the border wall pits national security against religious freedom in a high-stakes clash of the First and Fifth Amendments.
Michael M. Berger
Senior Counsel
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP
2049 Century Park East
Los Angeles , CA 90067
Phone: (310) 312-4185
Fax: (310) 996-6968
Email: mmberger@manatt.com
USC Law School
Michael M. Berger is senior counsel at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP, where his practice focuses on appeals with a particular interest in constitutional land use. He has argued four takings cases in the U.S. Supreme Court.
It doesn't happen that often. Direct litigation between church and state is surely the exception, rather than the rule. It is even more so in eminent domain cases. Indeed, when American Law Reports decided to do one of its eponymous annotations about takings from major institutions, it entitled the document "Eminent domain: right to condemn property owned or used by private educational, charitable, or religious organization, 80 A.L.R.3d 833 (1977)....
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