Smith v. City of Greenville

The central question before us is whether the plaintiff, Donald Smith, has riparian rights in Governor Bond Lake.

Construction of the lake, which is owned by one of the defendants, the city of Greenville, was completed in 1969. The plaintiff owns a 40-acre tract lying to the west of the lake. A ditch on the eastern edge of his property carried water from his property into the newly created lake, and at times water backed up onto plaintiff's property from the lake. As a result of the construction of the lake and the subsequent movement of water between plaintiff’s property and the lake, a…