Dorroh v. McCarthy

Fletcher, Presiding Justice.

Property owners William and Margaret Dorroh sued to stop their neighbor Brian McCarthy from constructing a dock in the navigable tidal waters in coastal Chatham County. The trial court ruled that McCarthy was a riparian owner because his property adjoins the high water mark of the river and that the Department of Natural Resources did not abuse its discretion in allowing equitable access to navigable water in the tidal basin among adjoining waterfront property owners. We agree that the state exercised its discretion reasonably when it adopted an equitable approach…