Owners' Counsel of America

What Owners' Counsel of America does

Owners' Counsel of America (OCA) is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit business association founded in 2000 by Toby Prince Brigham that operates as a national, invitation-only referral network of eminent domain and property rights attorneys, with one primary member per U.S. state plus one adjunct member in Canada. The organization connects private property owners — including homeowners, farmers and ranchers, commercial and industrial owners, and holders of special-purpose properties (religious buildings, schools, hospitals, campgrounds) — with experienced condemnation lawyers through a website lawyer locator, a toll-free phone number (877-367-6963), and a contact form. Core legal service offerings include eminent domain representation, inverse condemnation, regulatory takings defense, and broader property rights litigation, supplemented by amicus brief filings before the U.S. Supreme Court and state appellate courts.

OCA's underlying technology is a curated professional network and content platform rather than a software product; the website at ownerscounsel.com combines a state-by-state lawyer directory with extensive educational resources (dictionary of key terms, property owner FAQs, stages-of-case guides, state-by-state law database, and featured articles) and active social channels on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube. The association distributes content through an email newsletter, hosts the annual ALI-CLE Eminent Domain and Land Valuation Litigation Conference, runs the Toby Prince Brigham OCA Scholarship for law students, and operates the Crystal Eagle Award recognition program (2012–present) honoring property rights advocates.

OCA's revenue model is membership-dues-driven and subscription-recurring, with no consumer-facing fees and no enterprise customer concentration since the organization neither sells legal services directly nor takes referral fees — individual attorney fees are negotiated between property owners and member firms. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors (chaired by Darius Dynkowski of Butzel Long, with Dan Manning of Peddicord Lillis as Vice Chair) and led by Executive Director Heather A. Cunningham (appointed January 1, 2024). Membership is capped by design, growth comes primarily from the capped geographic footprint, and the strategic role of OCA is best understood as a reputational and coordination layer atop independent member law firms rather than as a scalable commercial enterprise.

Name

Owners' Counsel of America

Legal name

Owners' Counsel of America

Website

https://ownerscounsel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Owners' Counsel of America is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit association operating an invitation-only national network of one eminent domain attorney per U.S. state, connecting private property owners facing condemnation, inverse condemnation, or regulatory takings with experienced member lawyers via a website directory and toll-free phone line.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Eminent Domain Legal Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Legal Services (5411)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

Eminent Domain / Condemnation & Litigation Support Valuation (BPAJAKAJ)

Keywords

• Eminent domain law
• Condemnation attorneys
• Property rights law
• Inverse condemnation
• Regulatory takings

Headquarters

HQ city

Jacksonville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership dues: OCA operates as a 501(c)(6) business association. Primary membership is by invitation-only and restricted to one attorney per state. Members pay dues for access to the national network of condemnation lawyers, webinars, newsletter features, and the annual ALI-CLE conference.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Owners' Counsel of America is a national network of experienced eminent domain and condemnation attorneys (one primary member per state, invitation-only) that represents private property owners against government agencies, utilities, and other condemning authorities. Its core services include eminent domain defense, inverse condemnation, regulatory takings, and broader property rights litigation, supplemented by amicus brief advocacy and educational resources for property owners.

Product overview

Owners' Counsel of America (OCA) is a national network of experienced condemnation lawyers providing legal services to private property owners facing eminent domain, inverse condemnation, and regulatory taking situations. The organization operates as a platform of attorney members with one primary member per state. Core legal services include eminent domain representation, inverse condemnation, regulatory taking defense, and property rights advocacy. OCA provides supplementary resources including a dictionary of key terms, FAQ guides, stages of eminent domain case guides, state-by-state law databases, and featured articles. The organization also maintains an amicus brief filing program for significant property rights cases. Additionally, OCA offers the Toby Prince Brigham OCA Scholarship program for law students interested in property rights. Membership is by invitation-only, restricted to one primary attorney per state.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Eminent Domain Legal Representation Legal representation for private property owners facing eminent domain or condemnation proceedings, defending landowners against local and state governments, transportation departments, utilities, energy companies, redevelopment authorities, and the federal government. Available to homeowners, farmers, commercial and industrial property owners across the United States.
• Inverse Condemnation Legal Representation Legal representation when the government takes private property without following proper eminent domain procedures or without paying just compensation, initiated by the property owner. Available to private property owners across the United States.
• Regulatory Taking Legal Representation Legal representation for property owners when government regulations impair the value or usefulness of property, resulting in a taking that requires just compensation. Available to private property owners across the United States.
• Property Rights Legal Representation Legal representation focused on protecting private property ownership rights and defending against government overreach through regulations and taking actions. Available to private property owners across the United States.
• Amicus Brief Filing in Property Rights Cases Filing of amicus briefs in significant property rights cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and other courts to advocate for private property owner interests. Made available to courts and parties in landmark property rights cases.

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• American Bar Association (ABA) - Section of State, Local, and Tribal Government LawminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 August 2025OCA Honorary Member Robert Thomas received the ABA's Jefferson B. Fordham/Anita P. Miller Advocacy Award from the ABA Section of State, Local, and Tribal Government Law at an award luncheon in Toronto.
• William & Mary Law School - Brigham-Kanner Property Rights ConferencecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2000OCA and William & Mary Law School co-host the annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference, named in honor of OCA founder Toby Prince Brigham and Gideon Kanner. The conference brings together members of the bench, bar and academia to explore recent developments in property rights law and awards the Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize to individuals advancing the cause of property rights.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Super Lawyers: Super Lawyers is a rating service that recognizes top attorneys by state and practice area, including eminent domain. It is comparable as a credibility and discovery layer for property owners seeking specialist counsel, though it is a rating product rather than a referral network.
• ALI-CLE (American Law Institute - Continuing Legal Education): ALI-CLE is a continuing legal education provider that co-hosts the annual Eminent Domain and Land Valuation Litigation Conference with OCA. It is comparable as an ecosystem participant supporting property-rights practitioner education, though its mission is broader CLE across all legal topics.

Direct peers

• Avvo: Avvo is a national online legal directory and lawyer referral platform connecting consumers with attorneys across practice areas. Like OCA, it functions as a referral network, though Avvo operates across all legal specialties rather than focusing exclusively on eminent domain.
• Lawyers.com: Lawyers.com is an attorney directory operated by Martindale-Hubbell that connects consumers with lawyers by practice area and location. Comparable to OCA's locator function, though OCA is curated and invitation-only while Lawyers.com is open listing.
• Justia: Justia is a legal information portal that includes an attorney directory, legal guides, and case law. It overlaps with OCA's mix of consumer-facing educational content and lawyer referral, though Justia serves all practice areas and is technology-first.
• FindLaw: FindLaw is a Thomson Reuters-owned legal information and attorney directory site that helps consumers locate lawyers by practice area and geography. It is comparable to OCA as a consumer-facing lawyer locator, though it spans all practice areas.

Emerging players

• Institute for Justice: Institute for Justice is a national public-interest law firm that litigates eminent domain, property rights, and economic liberty cases. It overlaps with OCA's mission of defending private property owners and has been recognized by OCA's Crystal Eagle Award.
• Pacific Legal Foundation: Pacific Legal Foundation is a public-interest law firm that litigates property rights and individual liberty cases, including at the U.S. Supreme Court. It is comparable to OCA as a property-rights advocacy organization, though PLF litigates directly rather than curating a private attorney referral network.

Broad incumbents

• Martindale-Hubbell: Martindale-Hubbell is a long-standing legal directory and peer-review rating service with broad national coverage across all practice areas. It is comparable as a lawyer discovery and credibility layer, though its scope is far wider than OCA's eminent-domain specialty.
• American Bar Association: The ABA is the largest national professional association for lawyers, with section-level work in state and local government law relevant to eminent domain. OCA is a smaller, more specialized analog with a curated membership model.

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCFHfQioBleukxWYj6peTrXQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/OwnersCounselofAmerica
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/owners'-counsel-of-america

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Owners' Counsel of America