Franco-American Charolaise, Ltd. v. Oklahoma Water Resources Board

REIF, Special Justice,

concurring in part and dissenting in part:

I wish to state that I join the views expressed by Justice Lavender. In writing separately, I do not propose to improve upon his analysis and conclusions. Rather, I offer this brief statement because I once held the general viewpoint of the majority opinion that a riparian has a vested right to initiate any reasonable use at any time.

Admittedly, the hallmark of riparian law has been the settling of controversies caused by new uses conflicting with established uses. The courts were called upon to weigh the competing interests (and…