riparian right
- noun
- /rɪˈpɛəriən raɪt/
- Formal
:
derecho ripario
- Farmers near the river are entitled to riparian rights, allowing them to use the water for irrigation.
- law of riparian rights
Examples
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The property owner exercised her riparian right by setting up a dock on the river behind her house.
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The defendants relied upon Colorado's early session laws, which protected riparian rights, while the Left Hand Ditch Company's counsel relied on the state prior-appropriation law enacted in 1876.
Academic text (1992) -
194. Chicago then sued to regain its ownership in fee of the land and riparian rights.
Academic text (1996) -
These include private and public nuisance, riparian rights, negligence, trespass, and strict liability.
Academic text (1992) -
If a plaintiff's business losses are based upon the exercise of a public right or a riparian right, courts have found that pure economic losses are compensable under the public nuisance theory.
Academic text (1990) -
This acquisition, along with previous purchases made in the 1890s, gave Henshaw extensive riparian rights along the San Luis Rey River from its mountain source to the Pacific Ocean.
Academic text (2000) -
Understanding riparian rights is crucial for landowners who wish to manage water use responsibly.
Synonyms
6
5.7
Permission from the law to use water from a river or lake
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is directly compositional: 'riparian' means connected to the banks of a river and 'right' means a legal entitlement, so 'riparian right' straightforwardly denotes a legal entitlement related to river/streamfront property. Although it is a technical legal term, its meaning follows directly from the constituents and is the kind of modifier+noun combination a learner who knows both words can infer.
Etymology
The term riparian right comes from a word for the river bank: riparian means land that touches a river and right means a legal claim. So, if your land meets the water, you have the 'right' to use some of it, which is why the phrase means a landowner's ability to take water from a river.