Section 42-2-15 - Verdict and judgment.
42-2-15. Verdict and judgment.
Notwithstanding the provisions of the Relocation Assistance Act [42-3-1 to 42-3-15 NMSA 1978]:
A. for the purposes of assessing compensation and damages, the right thereto shall be deemed to have accrued as of the date the petition is filed, and its actual value on that date shall be the measure of compensation for all property taken, and also the basis of damages for property not taken but injuriously affected in cases where such damages are legally recoverable; the amount of the award shall be determined from the evidence and not be limited to any amount alleged in the petition or set forth in the answer;
B. whenever just compensation shall be ascertained and awarded in such proceeding and established by judgment, the judgment shall include as a part of the just compensation awarded, interest at the rate of six percent a year from the date of the date the petition is filed to the date of payment or the date when the proceedings are finally abandoned;
C. the court shall have the power to direct the payment of delinquent taxes, special assessments and rental or other charges owed out of the amount determined to be just compensation, and to make such orders with respect to encumbrances, liens, rents, insurance and other just and equitable charges; and
D. when two or more estates or divided interests in any tract are the subject of a trial by a jury, and the court has determined that there shall be no division of the causes, the verdict shall be in one sum and shall be the amount of just compensation for the tract affected as of the date of the filing of the petition, and the court shall thereafter proceed to hear and determine the value of the respective interests or ownerships in said tract, and shall apportion the amount of the verdict between the defendants according to their various interests therein.