Case Summaries

Utah Supreme Court  2013 UT 54 (Click here for full text of Opinion) August 16, 2013           The Utah Supreme Court clarified rules pertaining to partial forfeiture and partial abandonment of water rights.  The Court reasserted long-standing precedent that water rights may be partially forfeited through non-use.  Utah Statutes apparently did not include partial forfeiture until 2002,...

Supreme Court of the United States Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District  (Click for full text of Opinion) June 25, 2013      A property owner sought approval to develop land that was subject to wetland regulation by the water district.  The developer offered to offset the impact on the wetlands with a conservation easement.  However, the district rejected the...

Utah Court of Appeals 2013 UT App 121 (Click for full text of Opinion) May 16, 2013           The Utah Court of Appeals upheld a county’s determination that a private school serving students with specific needs met the county’s definition of “school,” and was thus a permitted use.            The case concerned a proposed private school, Green Valley Academy, which serves...

Utah Court of Appeals 2013 UT App 119 (Click for full text of Opinion) May 9, 2013           The Utah Court of Appeals upheld a decision of Kane County’s Board of Adjustment to deny a building permit to a property owner.  The Board had concluded that the property in question had been improperly subdivided, and was thus ineglible for a building permit. ...

Supreme Court of Utah 2013 UT 25 (Click for full text of Opinion) May 3, 2013           The Utah Supreme Court considered an application of the “more necessary public use” provision of Utah’s eminent domain statute, and rejected an expanded version of the so-called “compatible use exception” to that provision.            Schroeder Investments hoped to develop its property but needed a...

Utah Court of Appeals 2013 UT App 30  (Click for Full Text of Opinion) January 31, 2013           This case considered whether a party should be awarded attorney fees in an eminent domain action under the “bad faith fee statute,” Utah Code Ann. § 78B-5-825 or under § 78B-517 (abandonment of eminent domain proceedings).               The County sought to acquire...

Utah Court of Appeals 2012 UT App 349 (Click for Full Text of Opinion) December 13, 2012 This case confirmed and clarified aspects of the Boundary by Acquiesence Doctrine.  Because boundary by acquiescence alters the fee simple ownership of property (by altering property boundaries), a claim of boundary by acquiescence must be proven by clear and convincing evidence.  The party attempting...