Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

You're probably overthinking it. Call a lawyer.

Call Now: 904-383-7448
Florida Statute 253.141 - Full Text and Legal Analysis
Florida Statute 253.141 | Lawyer Caselaw & Research
Link to State of Florida Official Statute
F.S. 253.141 Case Law from Google Scholar Google Search for Amendments to 253.141

The 2025 Florida Statutes

Title XVIII
PUBLIC LANDS AND PROPERTY
Chapter 253
STATE LANDS
View Entire Chapter
253.141 Riparian rights defined; certain submerged bottoms subject to private ownership.
(1) Riparian rights are those incident to land bordering upon navigable waters. They are rights of ingress, egress, boating, bathing, and fishing and such others as may be or have been defined by law. Such rights are not of a proprietary nature. They are rights inuring to the owner of the riparian land but are not owned by him or her. They are appurtenant to and are inseparable from the riparian land. The land to which the owner holds title must extend to the ordinary high watermark of the navigable water in order that riparian rights may attach. Conveyance of title to or lease of the riparian land entitles the grantee to the riparian rights running therewith whether or not mentioned in the deed or lease of the upland.
(2) Navigable waters in this state shall not be held to extend to any permanent or transient waters in the form of so-called lakes, ponds, swamps or overflowed lands, lying over and upon areas which have heretofore been conveyed to private individuals by the United States or by the state without reservation of public rights in and to said waters.
(3) The submerged lands of any nonmeandered lake shall be deemed subject to private ownership where the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund of Florida conveyed the same more than 50 years ago without any deductions for water and without any reservation for public use and when taxes have been levied and collected on said submerged lands since conveyance by the state.
(4) Where private ownership of submerged bottoms outward from the shore has originated in a Spanish or other land grant approved by the Congress specifically describing an area in which was included navigable water, or by patent out of the United States prior to the date on which Florida became a state likewise containing a description including navigable water, or upon a valid conveyance out of the state, the submerged land included in such grant, patent, or conveyance shall be subject to taxes lawfully imposed.
History.ss. 1, 2, ch. 28262, 1953; s. 2, ch. 61-119; s. 31, ch. 82-226; s. 200, ch. 85-342; s. 140, ch. 95-148.
Note.Former ss. 192.61(1)-(4), 271.09, 197.315(3), 197.228.

F.S. 253.141 on Google Scholar

F.S. 253.141 on CourtListener

Amendments to 253.141


Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases Citing Statute 253.141

Total Results: 12  |  Sort by: Relevance  |  Newest First

Copy

Walton Cnty. v. Stop Beach Renourishment, 998 So. 2d 1102 (Fla. 2008).

Cited 27 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 2008 WL 4381126

...Notwithstanding its apparent inconvenience to the majority, Belvedere continues to stand for the principle of law that riparian or littoral rights are generally inseparable from riparian or littoral uplands in this State. See 476 So.2d at 651-52; see also § 253.141(1), Fla....
...are appurtenant to and are inseparable from the riparian land. " (emphasis supplied)). Today, the majority has returned to a "hopelessly illogical hypothesis" without even an attempt to advance some rational analysis that conforms to the Florida Constitution, our common law, and section 253.141, Florida Statutes....
...643, 644 (Fla.1909) ("Riparian rights are incident to the ownership of lands contiguous to and bordering on navigable waters. The common-law rights of riparian owners with reference to the navigable waters are incident to the ownership of the uplands that extend to [the] *1124 high-water mark. " (emphasis supplied)); § 253.141(1), Fla....
...tion of the original water lines." Bd. of Trs. of the Internal Improvement Fund v. Medeira Beach Nominee, Inc., 272 So.2d 209, 213 (Fla. 2d DCA 1973) (quoting Hughes v. Washington, 389 U.S. 290, 293-94, 88 S.Ct. 438, 19 L.Ed.2d 530 (1967)); see also § 253.141(1), Fla....
...*1126 between the MHWL and the low-water mark, while, in contrast, the littoral-upland holder's ownership continues until, and includes, the MHWL. See, e.g., White v. Hughes, 139 Fla. 54, 190 So. 446, 449 (1939); see also art. X, § 11, Fla. Const; § 253.141(1), Fla....
...ate riparian or littoral property from the resulting MHWL simply violates all prior notions of waterfront property rights in Florida. See, e.g., Sand Key, 512 So.2d at 936; Kendry v. State Road Dep't of Fla., 213 So.2d 23, 27-28 (Fla. 4th DCA 1968); § 253.141(1), Fla....
...Accordingly, I cannot agree that the Sovereign may create a substantially wider "foreshore," which unnecessarily destroys the inherent and essential nature of riparian and littoral property along with valuable property rights. Under our common law, article X, section 11 of the Florida Constitution, and section 253.141, Florida Statutes, the Sovereign only owns the land between the MHWL and the low-water mark (along with the land under navigable waters), and the private littoral-upland owner owns the land up to, and including, the MHWL....
...than accreted portions of land which the State may readjust to maintain the reestablished MHWL at the recorded ECL), [27] the State could sustain the common-law rule and remain true to its definition of littoral and riparian rights contained within section 253.141(1), Florida Statutes: "The land to which the owner holds title must extend to the ordinary high watermark of the navigable water in order that riparian [or littoral] rights may attach. " § 253.141(1), Fla....
...rning the shore to its pre-restoration status, which means that the MHWL would naturally move away from the ECL and contiguous ownership would remain with the littoral-upland owners, not the State. See art. X, § 11, Fla. Const; §§ 161.211(2)-(3), 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

Tewksbury v. City of Deerfield Beach, 763 So. 2d 1071 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999).

Cited 8 times | Published | Florida 4th District Court of Appeal | 1999 WL 741109

...In Florida, riparian rights include "(1) general use of the water adjacent to the property, (2) to wharf out to navigability, (3) to have access to navigable waters and (4) the right to accretions." Belvedere Dev. Corp. v. Department of Transp., 476 So.2d 649, 651 (Fla. 1985); see also § 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

Haynes v. Carbonell, 532 So. 2d 746 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988).

Cited 8 times | Published | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 1988 WL 103863

...Firster, 113 So.2d 260 (Fla. 2d DCA 1959). A conveyance of uplands bounded by navigable waters carries with it riparian rights in the seashores or river banks. They are not owned by the riparian landowner but are inseparable from the riparian land. § 253.141, Fla....
Copy

Reynolds v. Cnty. of Volusia, 659 So. 2d 1186 (Fla. 5th DCA 1995).

Cited 5 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 1995 WL 490554

...s (1968). [5] In order to have littoral rights, the lot owners had to establish that they were owners of the uplands bounded by the Atlantic Ocean. See Hayes v. Bowman, 91 So.2d 795 (Fla. 1957); Haynes v. Carbonell, 532 So.2d 746 (Fla. 3d DCA 1988); § 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

Save Our Beaches, Inc. v. Florida Dep't of Env't Prot., 27 So. 3d 48 (Fla. 1st DCA 2006).

Cited 1 times | Published | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 2006 WL 1112700

...stal permits. The relevant part of Rule 18-21.004(3) provides: Riparian Rights. (a) None of the provisions of this rule shall be implemented in a manner that would unreasonably infringe upon the traditional, common law riparian rights, as defined in Section 253.141, F.S., of upland property owners adjacent to sovereignty submerged lands....
...water remain intact [5] ; (2) the right to use the water for navigational purposes; (3) the right to an unobstructed view of the water; and (4) the right to receive accretions [6] and relictions to the property." Sand Key Assocs., 512 So.2d at 936. Section 253.141(1), Florida Statutes (2005) describes riparian rights: (1) Riparian rights are those incident to land bordering upon navigable waters....
...1st DCA 1999) (stating that "[c]urrently, the State's ownership extends up to the ordinary high water mark of navigable waterways, and an individual must own property down to the ordinary high water mark in order to possess riparian rights," citing Florida Statutes including section 253.141)....
...e of an express bilateral agreement to do so with the condemnee;" and concluding that "the act of condemning petitioners' lands without compensating them for their riparian property rights under these facts was an unconstitutional taking"). See also § 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

Secret Oaks Owner's Ass'n v. DEP, 704 So. 2d 702 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998).

Cited 1 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 1998 WL 499

...In this case, where the upland owner refuses, consent must be denied by the Trustees. Subsequent to its original intent to deny, the D.E.P. issued a "clarification" on February 28, 1996, which stated simply: Riparian rights are held only by the title holder or the holder of a lease of the riparian uplands. See § 253.141, Florida Statutes....
...Secret Oaks Owners Ass'n, 689 So.2d 320 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997). [3] Parlato v. Secret Oaks Owners Ass'n, 652 So.2d 833 (Fla. 5th DCA 1995). [4] Parlato v. Secret Oaks Owners Ass'n, 689 So.2d 320 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997). The D.E.P. was not a party to either case. [5] The D.E.P. relies on section 253.141, Florida Statutes (1995), which provides: Riparian rights defined; certain submerged bottoms subject to private ownership.— (1) Riparian rights are those incident to land bordering upon navigable waters....
Copy

Whetstone v. City of St. Augustine, 186 So. 3d 34 (Fla. 5th DCA 2016).

Cited 1 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 2016 Fla. App. LEXIS 1974, 2016 WL 542870

...ve in a common law dedication. The trial court also properly rejected the Whetstones! alternative claim of riparian rights as a basis for applying for the dock permit. “Riparian rights are those incident to land bordering upon navigable waters.” § 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

City of Tallahassee v. J.R., 771 So. 2d 587 (Fla. 1st DCA 2000).

Published | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 2000 Fla. App. LEXIS 14665, 2000 WL 1675996

...The Trust’s reliance on case law holding that riparian rights are a recognized property right, the loss of which is compensable, is not persuasive, for in the instant case there is no taking of the Trust’s riparian rights. The City’s reliance on the definition of “riparian rights” found in section 253.141, Florida Statutes (1999), is also misplaced, for that chapter relates to State-owned lands and the definition is restricted to “land bordering upon navigable waters.” Nevertheless, we find that the better view of “riparian right...
Copy

Colgan v. Shadow Point (Fla. 3d DCA 2018).

Published | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal

...watermark of the navigable water in order that riparian rights may attach. Conveyance of title to or lease of the riparian land entitles the grantee to the riparian rights running therewith whether or not mentioned in the deed or lease of the upland. § 253.141(1), Fla....
Copy

Ago (Fla. Att'y Gen. 1990).

Published | Florida Attorney General Reports

the Florida Intracoastal Waterway . . . ." 3 Section 253.141(1), F.S., defines riparian rights for purposes
Copy

Ago (Fla. Att'y Gen. 1996).

Published | Florida Attorney General Reports

209, 214 (Fla. 2d DCA 1973). 4 Id. at 214. 5 Section 253.141(1), Fla. Stat. (1995), defines "riparian rights"
Copy

Florida Dep't of Transp. v. Lauderdale Boat Yard, LLC (Fla. 4th DCA 2022).

Published | Florida 4th District Court of Appeal

...Nothing in the record shows that Tract A was replatted to extend to the boundary of Parcel 108. While LBY’s deed states that LBY owns the property with “all appurtenances,” it is unclear that Tract A retained riparian rights after replatting. See § 253.141, Fla....

This Florida statute resource is curated by Graham W. Syfert, Esq., a Jacksonville, Florida personal injury and workers' compensation attorney. For legal consultation, call 904-383-7448.