Ross v. Nelson

Summary

The Kansas Supreme Court affirmed judgments holding that Nelson trespassed by installing private, permanent pipelines beneath public roads without the fee owner's permission. The court held that the landowner had standing because the public highway easement did not include the private and exclusive subsurface use, and that the county could not authorize such use. The court also held that Nelson was not entitled to right-to-farm statutory presumptions because the integrated agricultural operation was not undertaken in conformity with state law when its pipelines trespassed on the landowner's property.