Arizona Supreme Court
In Re General Adjudication of All Rights to Use Water in the Gila River System and Source. in Re General…
September 12, 2012231 Ariz. 8
Summary
The Arizona Supreme Court affirmed the ruling that State Trust Lands received from the federal government do not carry implied federal reserved water rights. The court held that the grants neither withdrew the lands from the public domain nor reserved them for a federal purpose, and that Congress did not otherwise intend to reserve water rights. The court also concluded that the grants should be narrowly construed because denying reserved water rights would not defeat their purpose or render the lands worthless.