In the ongoing legal saga of Northeastern University v. Nahant Preservation Trust, Judge Jeffrey T. Karp’s April 2024 opinion voiding the town of Nahant’s eminent domain taking has stirred significant debate. Karp ruled that Nahant’s attempt to seize conservation and access easements over Northeastern’s land at East Point was a “pretextual bad faith taking,” driven not by a legitimate public purpose like preserving open space, but by a desire to block Northeastern’s Marine Science Center expansion. However, this decision may not stand for long if it ascends on appeal, especially in light of the recent summary disposition in Brinkmann v. Town of Southold (2024), in which the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge based on similar “bad faith” arguments. That move strongly signals that higher courts are unlikely to entertain such claims, leaving Northeastern’s legal theory on increasingly shaky ground.
Karp’s ruling hinges on his finding that Nahant’s “dominant purpose” was to thwart Northeastern’s development rather than to advance a public good. He leaned heavily on evidence like public statements from town officials, financial analyses showing potential losses from the project, and the unusual funding of the taking by the Nahant Preservation Trust. This, Karp argued, violated the standard set by Massachusetts law and the Supreme Judicial Court’s precedent in Pheasant Ridge Assocs. (1987), which allows courts to scrutinize takings for improper motives.
Yet the Supreme Court’s posture in Brinkmann confirms that Karp’s reasoning lies well outside the bounds of standing eminent domain precedent. By declining review, the Court reaffirmed deference to municipalities’ stated public purposes, rejecting efforts to invalidate takings based on alleged pretext. That effectively guts Northeastern’s legal foundation: if bad faith is not a viable legal argument against a facially valid public use, then the heart of Karp’s opinion is ripe for reversal.
In Brinkmann, the plaintiffs claimed that Southold, New York’s taking of their land for a public park was merely a cover for blocking commercial development. The Second Circuit upheld the taking, finding the stated purpose sufficient. The Supreme Court’s refusal to grant certiorari underscored this principle. Nahant’s stated goal of land conservation—consistently upheld as a valid public use—thus provides strong legal cover, no matter the speculation about political motives.
In this light, Northeastern’s aggressive posture appears less about legal strength and more about strategic desperation. The university initially demanded an astonishing $25 million in damages — an amount Judge Karp has already reduced by more than 95%. This overreach suggests that Northeastern realizes it’s likely to lose on appeal, and is now trying to force a settlement through intimidation. As the saying goes, if you can’t win on the facts or the law, pound the table. Northeastern, it seems, is pounding loudly.
If the case ascends on appeal, the reasoning in Brinkmann makes it increasingly clear that higher courts are unlikely to embrace Karp’s deep probe into Nahant’s motives. Courts have long avoided second-guessing municipalities’ stated public purposes, as seen in cases like Kelo v. City of New London (2005), which upheld a taking for economic development, and Midkiff v. Hawaii Housing Authority (1984), which affirmed takings aimed at land redistribution. Nahant’s conservation easement fits squarely within these precedents. Against that backdrop, Karp’s 53-page opinion may be seen not as thoughtful scrutiny but as judicial overreach.
Federal courts almost never strike down takings based solely on alleged bad faith, absent clear evidence of corruption or private enrichment, which is not present here. Nahant’s approach, while politically charged, sits well within long-established legal doctrine. With Brinkmann underscoring that reality, Northeastern’s case is increasingly hollow. Its legal firepower now looks less like confidence and more like a last-ditch effort to salvage a deal before the appeals court brings the hammer down.
Harlan Harvey is a Nahant resident.
