## Facts

- In 1991, the Legare family donated approximately 448.40 acres of marshland on the Ashley River to Lowcountry Open Land Trust (LOLT).
- LOLT claimed fee-simple ownership of marsh/tidelands below the high-water mark based on an 1836 state grant to Edward C. Peronneau and an accompanying plat depicting the tract.
- The State stipulated LOLT was the record owner of the described tract but disputed that the donation and chain of title necessarily included tidelands as a matter of law.
- Shortly after the donation, James A. Atkins bought an adjacent upland lot fronting the Ashley River.
- A state agency provisionally approved a permit for Atkins to build a 60-foot dock extending from his upland lot across LOLT’s marsh to navigable waters.
- LOLT objected, asserting the dock would be built on its fee-simple property and required its consent.
- Atkins asserted an upland owner’s riparian/littoral right to “wharf out” to navigable waters regardless of private ownership of the intervening tidelands, so long as permitting requirements were met.

## Issues

1. Whether LOLT proved that an 1836 state grant conveyed fee-simple title to tidelands below the high-water mark, rebutting the presumption of state ownership.
2. Whether an upland owner has a common-law riparian/littoral right to construct a dock across privately owned tidelands to reach navigable waters without the tidelands owner’s consent, assuming regulatory approval.

## Decision

- The South Carolina Court of Appeals affirmed the master-in-equity.
- The court held there was evidentiary support that the 1836 grant, as interpreted with the plat and related proof, conveyed land below the high-water mark, establishing LOLT’s fee-simple title to the tidelands.
- The court held Atkins had no independent riparian/littoral right to place a dock across LOLT’s privately owned tidelands without LOLT’s permission.
- The court held a regulatory permit (including provisional approval) does not supply the property right to occupy another’s land with a structure.

## Legal Principles

- The State presumptively holds title to tidelands under the public trust doctrine, but the presumption may be rebutted by proof of a clear, intentional grant of land below the high-water mark.
- Historic grants may be interpreted using the grant language, plats, and competent supporting evidence (including expert testimony) to determine whether tidelands were conveyed into private ownership.
- Riparian/littoral rights of an upland owner do not include a right to trespass upon or build on privately owned tidelands absent the owner’s consent or an independent property interest (e.g., easement).
- Environmental/coastal permitting authorizes regulated activity but does not transfer or create underlying property rights against a private landowner.
- An action determining title to real property (including marsh/tidelands) is treated as an action at law; appellate review affirms factual findings if supported by any evidence.

## Conclusion

The court upheld LOLT’s fee-simple ownership of the tidelands based on an 1836 grant and ruled that an adjacent upland owner cannot “wharf out” across privately owned tidelands without the tidelands owner’s consent, even when regulatory permitting has been obtained.


Lowcountry Open Land Trust v. State, 347 S.C. 96, 552 S.E.2d 778 (S.C. Ct. App. 2001)