State v. Placid Oil Co. - 300 So. 2d 154 (La. 1973)

Rule:

It is well settled that the beds or bottoms of all navigable waters in the State, whether lakes, rivers or streams, belong to the State by virtue of its inherent sovereignty. With respect to the beds or bottoms of navigable rivers and streams, the State holds in her sovereign capacity only the land that is covered by water at its ordinary low stage. Furthermore, the land lying between the ordinary low water mark and the ordinary high water mark is called the bank of the stream and belongs to the owner of the adjacent land, subject to the use by the public, La. Civ. Code Ann. art. 455 and La. Civ. Code Ann. art. 457.

Facts:

The present action was instituted by the State of Louisiana and its mineral lessee, Gulf Oil Corporation, involving an area of land located below the ordinary high-water mark of a body of water in St. Mary Parish known as "Six Mile Lake" adjacent to Sections 49, 50 and 68, Township 15 South, Range 11 East. The State argued that the land properly belonged to it, rather than to the owners. The trial court found in favor of the owners, and the State appealed the ruling. The Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court in holding that Six Mile Lake constituted a stream as opposed to a lake, thereby making applicable the rules of property provided in Articles 455 and 509 of the Civil Code. The State appealed. 

Issue:

Did the land in question belong to the State? 

Answer:

Yes.

Conclusion:

The court reversed the decision of the lower courts, holding that the beds or bottoms of all navigable waters in the State, whether lakes, rivers, or streams, belonged to the State by virtue of its inherent sovereignty. However, the court stated that the land lying between the ordinary low water mark and the ordinary high-water mark was called the bank of the stream and belonged to the owner of the adjacent land, subject to the use by the public, La. Civ. Code Ann. art. 455 and La. Civ. Code Ann. art. 457. The court determined that because the body of water was a lake and not a river, the owners did not have alluvial rights to the land since the body of water was a great size, irregularly shaped, and deemed to be a lake at the time the State joined the union. The court concluded that the land was the property of the State and not the owners.