ELR Citation: 41 ELR 20296
No(s). 2011-OHIO-4612 (Ohio Sep 14, 2011)

The Supreme Court of Ohio held that the territory of Lake Erie held in trust by the state of Ohio extends to the natural shoreline, which is the line at which the water usually stands when free from disturbing causes. Case law from 1878 and 1916, as well as the Fleming Act, enacted by the Ohio General Assembly in 1917, support this conclusion. Accordingly, littoral owners of the upland have no title beyond the natural shoreline; they have only the right of access and wharfing out to navigable waters. In addition, the court noted that its decision does not interfere with presumptively valid deeds of lakefront owners.