BFT Rental, LLC v. City of Fayetteville (Eminent Domain Compensation Appeal)

Eminent Domain Ruling Issued
Date
October 28, 2026
Court or forum
Arkansas Court of Appeals, Division III (No. CV-25-506); Washington County Circuit Court (No. 72CV-23-3442)
State
Arkansas
Presiding judge
N. Mark Klappenbach
Amount / scale
$112,180 just-compensation deposit, affirmed as the ceiling on recovery
Parties
Appellant / Property Owner: BFT Rental, LLCAppellee / Condemnor: City of Fayetteville

BFT Rental, LLC lost its bid for more than the $112,180 the City of Fayetteville deposited for a condemned easement after BFT failed to appear for its own jury trial on just compensation.

The Arkansas Court of Appeals affirmed a directed verdict in favor of the City of Fayetteville after BFT Rental, LLC failed to appear for the jury trial set to determine just compensation for a condemned easement, leaving BFT's recovery capped at the City's $112,180 pre-trial deposit. The court held BFT forfeited appellate review of its claim that the circuit court erred in allowing its attorney to withdraw while denying a continuance, because BFT raised that objection for the first time in a post-trial motion rather than contemporaneously.

Why it matters

Confirms that a condemnee's right to a jury's independent assessment of just compensation can be lost through default just like any other civil claim, and that a statutory quick-take deposit can become the final ceiling on recovery once the condemnee fails to put on evidence of greater value at trial. Commercial property owners facing eminent domain actions should treat scheduling disputes and counsel transitions as issues requiring an immediate, on-the-record objection rather than a basis to raise after an adverse trial outcome.

Original source ↗
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A commercial property owner that skipped its own eminent domain trial has lost its bid on appeal to recover more than the government's pre-trial deposit for the taking. In BFT Rental, LLC v. City of Fayetteville, the Arkansas Court of Appeals affirmed a Washington County Circuit Court order granting the City of Fayetteville a directed verdict after BFT Rental, LLC failed to appear for the jury trial set to determine how much compensation it was owed for a condemned easement. The ruling leaves BFT's recovery capped at the $112,180 the City had already deposited with the court, underscoring that a condemnee's right to a jury's independent assessment of just compensation can be forfeited by default just as surely as any other civil claim.

Case timeline · 5 entries Latest: October 28, 2026 — Arkansas Court of Appeals affirms, holding BFT's objections were not preserved for appeal

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