In re Protest of Mason
North Carolina Court of Appeals
78 N.C. App. 16, 337 S.E.2d 99 (1985)

- Written by Alex Ruskell, JD
Facts
Huber applied to the Marine Fisheries Commission to lease public submerged lands for clam culture. Mason (plaintiff) opposed the proposed lease because the requested lease area overlapped Mason’s riparian access rights to Core Sound. Specifically, Mason argued that his riparian rights extended to the nearest federally mandated channel. The commission approved the lease subject to several conditions, including conditions that protected Mason’s right to navigation and recreation in the riparian area. Mason sued, arguing that the lease was an unlawful taking without compensation. The trial court ruled in Mason’s favor, finding that Mason’s riparian rights extended to the nearest federally mandated channel and were not dependent upon the actual shoreline or local water usage. Thus, the lease resulted in a taking despite any of the lease’s conditions. The Commission appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Becton, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 816,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.