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Environmental Law

Washington and Lee University School of Law

Series

Environmental law

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Law

Colonial Property, Private Dams, And Climate Change In Virginia, Jill M. Fraley Jan 2013

Colonial Property, Private Dams, And Climate Change In Virginia, Jill M. Fraley

Scholarly Articles

Dams have been a significant part of flood prevention and management systems in the United States, dating back to the systematic efforts of the Tennessee Valley Authority and, less systemically, long before that. Dealing with flood management in Virginia presents unique challenges because of a colonial legacy that allows most dams in Virginia to be privately owned. Through a mechanism called King’s Grants, some Virginia landowners hold title not simply to property surrounding a navigable waterway, but also to the soil beneath the river and to dams crossing the river. Such ownership of the soil of large, navigable waterways is …


Introduction To Property, History & Climate Change In The Former Colonies Symposium Special Issue, Jill M. Fraley Jan 2013

Introduction To Property, History & Climate Change In The Former Colonies Symposium Special Issue, Jill M. Fraley

Scholarly Articles

None available.


Re-Examining Acts Of God, Jill M. Fraley Jul 2010

Re-Examining Acts Of God, Jill M. Fraley

Scholarly Articles

For more than three centuries, tort law has included the notion of an act of God as something caused naturally, beyond both man's anticipation and control. Historically, the doctrine applied to extraordinary manifestations of the forces of nature, including floods, earthquakes, blizzards, and hurricanes. Despite the significance of the doctrine, particularly in large-scale disasters, scholars rarely engage the act of God defense critically. However, recently, the doctrine has received more substantial criticism. Denis Binder argued that the doctrine should be repudiated as merely a restatement of existing negligence principles Joel Eagle criticized the doctrine, suggesting that it should not exclude …