Class actions dealing with real property contamination often require some method of valuing the properties. Individual appraisals on those properties are not required; mass appraisal methods meet both the Frye and Daubert tests and can be superior to individual methods in class actions or mass torts. Professional appraisal standards provide accepted rules for handling mass valuations, and group standards are commonly used for tax assessment. In fact, individual appraisals are rarely appropriate for addressing the value of property located in an environmentally contaminated area.
Author: John A. Kilpatrick
Originally published in BNA’s Toxics Law Reporter, Vol. 20, No. 2 (2005)
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