Every State legislator should understand the Trust Power, as one of the many sovereign powers a State may exercise. It is a power different in source and substance from other state powers. The Trust Power was reserved by the 13 original States from the federal government, and ceded to every new State by the Equal Footing Doctrine. When appropriately used, the Trust Power insulates a State from ‘takings’ claims. The Trust Power also endows the legislature and state agencies with Trust duties and responsibilities that mirror the public’s trust rights.  Every legislator should understand the clear difference between a State’s exercise of its “police power” and its “Trust Power.”The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion devotes two chapters of great interest to State legislators, one on the Trust Power and the other on Fifth Amendment Takings and the Public Trust Doctrine.  Both chapters offer an easy to read review of the origins and dimensions of the Trust Power, and how exercising the Trust Power can insulate a state from “Takings” claims.

Every manager of trust resources, and every conservation organization interested in the wise stewardship of trust resources, should be knowledgeable about the Public Trust Doctrine. Originally a body of ancient common law focused on navigation and fishing rights, the Public Trust Doctrine has evolved into a powerful tool for preserving the Nation’s oceans, coasts, rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands, as well as the fisheries and other living resources inhabiting them. The Public Trust Doctrine has been affirmed by numerous State supreme courts as providing the legal basis for ecological protection, minimum instream flows, and even for preserving scenic beauty. The Public Trust Doctrine also places duties and obligations upon the States to preserve and enhance trust resources for both current and future generations. The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion should be read cover-to-cover by every trust resource manager, and every conservationist in the country!

Anyone interested in water rights, especially in the western states, should be very aware of the Public Trust Doctrine. Ever since our western states entered the Union they, as Trustees, have distributed trust waters under the doctrine of prior appropriation. This worked well until that system of distribution sucked rivers and lakes dry, and held that leaving water in lakes and rivers was “waste.” Four notable cases have arisen over the last 10 years establishing the role of the Public Trust Doctrine in western water rights.  The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion dedicates an entire chapter to the confluence of these two doctrines.

Although written in plain English for non-lawyers, The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion is a book every natural resource lawyer will want in his or her library. Having the last decade’s worth of Public Trust Doctrine case law, offered in easy to read format, is priceless. And though every citizen should be familiar with the Public Trust Doctrine, it is the lawyers who will take the lessons in The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion and propound the legal arguments to expand and shape the doctrine to the evolving needs of a modern society. As Chapter VII: Creative Arguments illustrates, imaginative arguments often fail, but somewhere, sometime in the distant past, some lawyer argued in some courthouse that if the public has a trust right to fish, the public must therefore have a trust right to ‘fishable’ waters – and the dusty old doctrine once meant to preserve commercial fishing and navigation evolved into a powerful argument for environmental preservation. And even though lawyers can’t always float home with the tide (see the last case in this book), the Brethren of the Bar play a vital role by constantly arguing against the tide in order to secure a better and wiser stewardship for the beneficiaries of the Public Trust – all Americans, and our children and grandchildren yet to come.

Owners, buyers and sellers of water front property, whether the parcel is residential, commercial or industrial, and the real estate agents who serve them, should be familiar with the Public Trust Doctrine. More and more realty firms are finding themselves as “Defendant” in litigation over a parcel’s water rights, or the public’s use of that “private” beach they assured the buyer would have. Many a waterfront buyer has found out too late that the parcel really isn’t waterfront at all, or that its title insurance doesn’t really cover everything claimed in the Deed. As global warming causes sea level to rise, waterfront property owners clearly have a property interest as they watch the ‘ordinary high water mark’ relentlessly move landward. Even in these most modern of times, ancient property law still applies to our current problem of rising sea level, and the boundary between private upland, and public trust shore lands. The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion devotes an entire chapter to the Public Trust Doctrine and Waterfront Property, offering a clear, easy to read review of the many issues that can arise.

Anyone who enjoys the beauty and bounty of the Nations waters and wildlife, or even just drinks a glass of water, should read this book. Parents and grandparents worried about the stewardship of this planet for our children should be familiar with the Public Trust Doctrine. And though written by a lawyer, The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion is written for non-lawyers. The preservation of the public’s trust rights and the stewardship of this nation’s resources are far too important to be left to lawyers. The Public Trust Doctrine In Motion brings what is truly a complex legal doctrine into the focus and reach of every person, in a readable (and sometimes humorous) fashion.