The U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari on Oct. 1, 2018 to Martins Beach 1 v. Surfrider Foundation, __ U.S. __, 2018 U.S. LEXIS 5704. The court refused to hear an appeal by an owner to overturn a ruling that a beach access path must stay open.

The access to the beach was located near Half Moon Bay, Calif. The property never had public access. The beach could only be accessed by driving down a private road after the payment of a fee. There was no question that the public owns the portion of Martins Beach below the high-tide line. After the property was acquired by a new owner, the county demanded that the beach be open to the public year-round. The basis for demand was the California Coastal Act of 1976. The petition for certiorari alleged that the physical invasion of private property is a per se taking and that the Coastal Act cannot constitutionally be applied to compel uncompensated physical invasions of private property. After all, the right to exclude others is “one of the most essential sticks in the bundle of rights that are commonly characterized as property.” Loretto v. Teleprompter Manhattan CATV, 458 U.S. 419, 433 (1982).