Frank Michelman

Who is Frank Michelman?

Frank Isaac Michelman is an American legal scholar and the Robert Walmsley University Professor Emeritus at Harvard Law School.

Michelman wrote the influential law review article, Property, Utility and Fairness, on the economic reasons for just compensation in the 5th Amendment Takings Clause in the United States Constitution. This article was cited by the majority in its opinion in Penn Central v. New York City, the Supreme Court case that dealt with the authority of a local New York City landmark law that forbade the railroad company from putting up a skyscraper above the historic Grand Central Terminal structure. Michelman's analysis relied on evaluating whether the nuisance costs and value to society were worth it. He observed that while the Courts did not always provide rulings which were fair or provided utility, they provided as perfect a results that can be obtained by the Courts. He observed that administrative agencies and legislatures were shirking their roles in the compensation process.

Michelman served as Vice-President of the American Society for Political and Legal Philosophy 1994-96 and as its President, 1998-2001.