This website requires JavaScript. Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings, or use a different web browser like Google Chrome or Safari.

Options

From our private database of 26,900+ case briefs...

State ex rel. Haman v. Fox

Idaho Supreme Court

594 P.2d 1093 (1979)

Facts

C.R.W. and Eileen Fox (defendants) owned waterfront property on a lake. The property was divided by a public road. The portion of the property south of the road and directly abutting the lake was mostly sandy beach. Since at least 1912, the general public used this beach portion of the property. Since at least 1920, the Foxes and their predecessors in interest maintained a seawall on the beach portion of the property, to protect the property from erosion caused by the lake. In 1971, the Foxes rebuilt the wall, making it a three-sided wall that effectively enclosed a portion of the beach, terminating public access. The State of Idaho (plaintiff) brought suit on behalf of its people, seeking to enjoin the Foxes’ use of the wall. The state argued that the public had obtained a prescriptive easement over the beach. The state alternatively argued that the public should be granted access to the beach via a finding of dedication, customary usage under the common law, and under the public-trust doctrine. The trial court ruled in favor of the Foxes. The court held that the public had not obtained a prescriptive easement, because the public’s use of the beach had been permitted by the Foxes and thus was not adverse. The state appealed.

Rule of Law

The rule of law is the black letter law upon which the court rested its decision. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Issue

The issue section includes the dispositive legal issue in the case phrased as a question. To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

Holding and Reasoning (McFadden, J.)

The holding and reasoning section includes:

A "yes" or "no" answer to the question framed in the issue section;
A summary of the majority or plurality opinion, using the CREAC method; and
The procedural disposition (e.g., reversed and remanded, affirmed, etc.).

To access this section, please start your free trial or log in.

What to do next…

Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.
You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 541,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.
Unlock this case brief Read our student testimonials
Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.
Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.
Learn about our approach Read more about Quimbee

Here's why 541,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 26,900 briefs, keyed to 983 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.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Here's why 541,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
26,900 briefs - keyed to 983 casebooks
Uniform format for every case brief
Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
Top-notch customer support