Hinckley Allen claimed an important win for private property rights in Rhode Island last week. In Roth v. Rhode Island, Hinckley Allen challenged the constitutionality of newly enacted state legislation that significantly...more
In June 2023, the Rhode Island General Assembly enacted legislation granting the public expanded “privileges of the shore,” including but not limited to the right to fish from the shore, to swim in the sea and to pass along...more
In Rhode Island, public access advocates, as well as local and state officials, continue efforts to secure access for the public to and along the shore. My August post, “How About a Walk on the Beach,” summarized the history...more
Managed retreat—the process of moving people and property away from the shoreline—is an unpopular but increasingly accepted response to rising sea-levels. In the inaugural issue of Nossaman’s California Water Views – 2023...more
August. Dog days of summer. And also the best time to take a relaxing stroll along the beach. But where? Public beaches are often still crammed if you can find a place to park. But many of us know of a public access path to...more
The Boston Globe is reporting on NIMBY opposition to a clam shack on Nantucket's Straight Wharf. It seems that residents of the adjacent North Wharf are concerned that the clam shack will increase noise in the neighborhood...more
Key Points:- The San Antonio Court of Appeals held property owners lacked standing to sue over lowering dam gates because the damages they alleged were not specific to them but suffered by the public at large...more
If you know someone with property that borders, is adjacent to, or abuts a natural lake, pond, bay, sea, or ocean, they may have littoral property rights. What that means is they may have the right to build a pier out to the...more
On November 25, 2019, the California Court of Appeal ruled that the public’s use of a road for more than half a century to access Martin’s Beach was permissive, and therefore “did not ripen into a public dedication that would...more
In the second half of this year the Massachusetts Appeals Court decided three cases in which a party claimed adverse possession or prescriptive rights in real estate. In each case the focus was on one particular element of...more
This blog post is about walls and fences (but probably not the ones you may be thinking about). The walls of concern to this blog post are located in the Town of Geneva, in a part of the state known as the Finger Lakes...more
The Supreme Court, Suffolk County recently upheld a determination of the Southampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals (“ZBA”) perhaps ending a lengthy and controversial review of the development of a day camp on residentially...more
The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states: “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” The California Constitution contains a similar provision. Reading these constitutional...more
In a recent published decision, the California Court of Appeal had the opportunity to address this issue when the property owners of a beachside residence in the City of Los Angeles challenged a setback condition that the...more
Thanks to all of you who were able to attend Nossaman’s Coastal Law Conference last week. If you missed the event, I provided an update on sea-level rise, managed retreat, and potential eminent domain / regulatory takings...more
We’ve been tracking the impacts of sea-level rise in California, and previously reported on a potential recommendation by the California Coastal Commission to utilize eminent domain for “managed retreat” — buying or...more
What Real Estate Do You Own? Normally, property owners know what land they own. They have a deed with a legal description and a survey which clearly shows their property line....more
Last year, we wrote a post to mark the sixth anniversary of “Superstorm Sandy,” a Category 1 storm that made landfall in October 2012. We also shared a preview of this year’s series of posts on extreme weather, and its impact...more
With the recent widespread reports of sea-level rise triggered by global warming, the California Coastal Commission — a state agency which regulates coastal development — plans to release a proposal in early-2019 which...more
The Court of Appeals of North Carolina (“Court”) addressed in an October 16th opinion whether Lewis Edward Dye, Jr (“Defendant”), through his chain of title in a small tract of land on Everett’s Lake (the “Lake”) also has the...more
As we previously reported, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) has been redrawing, “for the first time in three decades,” flood maps in the state of New York. With more than 500 miles of coastline and billions of...more
The stakes could not be higher; would the property yield one or two waterfront building lots? On June 23, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States decided a case that involved the merger of two parcels of property...more
Martins Beach, near Half Moon Bay in the County of San Mateo, is the subject of protracted litigation on various fronts stemming from tech billionaire Vinod Khosla’s 2009, decision to change the public’s access to and use of...more
A property owner who obtains a development permit will forfeit his right to challenge conditions imposed on that permit by proceeding with the development, the California Supreme said Thursday. ...more
In an important decision for owners of waterfront property, a divided Appeals Court panel has ruled in a case of first impression that where registered land expands by accretion, the owner need not return to court to...more