Supreme Court of Texas

On certification from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit for guidance in resolving plaintiff's Fourth Amendment unreasonable seizure claim, arising from homeowner's suit against several state officials claiming that the state, in attempting to enforce public easement, without proving its existence, on property not previously encumbered by an easement, violated her federal constitutional rights, the court finds that Texas does not recognize a "rolling" easement on Galveston's West Beach as, although easements for public use of private dry beach property do change along with gradual and imperceptible changes to the coastal landscape, avulsive events such as storms and hurricanes that drastically alter pre-existing littoral boundaries do not have the effect of allowing a public use easement to migrate onto previously unencumbered property.

Appellate Information

• Argued 11/19/2009
• Decided 11/05/2010
• Published 11/05/2010

Judges

• Array

Court

• Supreme Court of Texas

Counsel