A beachfront owner tries to stop the public from walking on the wet sand between the high- and low-tide lines. In most states the owner cannot do so because:
Correct Answer
B) the owner's title stops at the mean high-water mark and the state holds the tidelands in trust
Under the public trust doctrine, the states took title at statehood to the lands beneath navigable and tidal waters and hold them in trust for the public. Private beachfront ownership therefore ends at the mean high-water mark in most states, which leaves the wet sand between the tide lines in public hands and beyond the owner's power to fence or post. Some states extend public rights onto the dry sand by custom, dedication, or prescription, but each of those depends on proof in the particular case, while the tideland boundary applies as a matter of law.
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Related Topics & Key Terms
Related Topics:
Key Terms:
Related Concepts
A freehold estate conveys ownership rights, while a leasehold estate grants the right to possess and use property for a specific period without ownership.
Riparian rights concern properties bordering flowing bodies of water (rivers, streams), while littoral rights concern properties bordering non-flowing bodies of water (lakes, oceans).
The bundle of rights describes the rights associated with property ownership, allowing owners to use, control, enjoy, exclude others from, and dispose of the property.
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