Which doctrine states that owners have equal rights to use water passing by property?

• A. Riparian Rights
• B. Littoral Rights
• C. Public Trust Doctrine
• D. Riparian-Rights Doctrine

Answer: (D)

The main idea here is how water that flows past a landowner’s property is allocated among neighboring owners. When land borders a river or stream, riparian rights give each adjacent owner the right to reasonable use of that moving water. Those rights are shared among all riparian landowners, so each has an equal stake in the water passing by, as long as their use is reasonable and does not unreasonably harm others downstream or upstream. This concept is captured by the Riparian-Rights Doctrine, which describes these shared, property-adjacent water rights.

Littoral rights apply to properties along standing bodies of water like lakes or seas, not flowing water. The Public Trust Doctrine involves public rights to certain resources rather than private rights of neighboring landowners. While riparian rights are the general idea, the option that explicitly names the doctrine as governing equal access to water passing by property best matches the statement.