What is the riparian boundary of a property bordering a navigable, non-tidal river in Va? Is there any Code section that you can cite? Thanks
Depends on when the land was granted. If the title can be traced back to a King's Grant, then the boundary can be anywhere as specified in the grant. If the grant was after the Revolution the boundary is generally the bank of the river. And then there are always the exceptions to the rule and language in later deeds.
Thanks Dave. When you say Bank, I take this to mean Ordinary High Water mark. Is this correct? Also, is this codified? I have a handout from an old Virginia Boundary Law seminar which states that the boundary would be the Ordinary Low Water mark, and I did not think this was correct.
Yes, no & maybe - as is frequently the case in the Commonwealth. As to code, I think it was in the early 1800's that it was codified, but I don't have a cite. Here's a good book for you to check out: Waters of the State by Embrey, 1931. I know that there are copies that can be bought and I was recently told that it is on line, but I couldn't find it on line with a quick search.
Just found it:
Here's a link: https://archive.org/details/watersofstate00embr