Voss

This case is a companion case to the case of Golden Cheese Company v. Voss, ante, page 547 [ 281 Cal.Rptr. 602 ], herein referred to as “Voss.” In that case, we decided that the trial court properly denied Golden Cheese’s petition for writ of mandate because an order of the director of the Department of Food and Agriculture setting the minimum price to be paid by cheese manufacturers to producers for class 4b market milk was a valid exercise of the discretion entrusted to the director by the Legislature.

In this case, Golden Cheese contends that the same order constituted a taking of its property by inverse condemnation. It contends that even a lawful order can give rise to an inverse condemnation claim. It therefore contends that the issues raised in this case are not dependent upon an outcome favorable to it in the companion case, and that the allegations of the complaint, taken as true for purposes of the demurrer, show that the trial court erred in sustaining the demurrer without leave to amend.

The Complaint

1. First Cause of Action—Declaratory Relief

In this cause of action, Golden Cheese alleges that a controversy exists between it and the department over the…