Fla. Dep’t of Transp. v. Clipper Bay Invs., LLC
Annotate this CaseClipper Bay Investments, LLC filed an action to quiet title and ejectment against the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) seeking to quiet title to a portion of land adjacent to an interstate in Santa Rosa County under the Marketable Record Title Act (MRTA). FDOT alleged that the land to which Clipper Bay claimed title was a portion of what FDOT considered part of its interstate right-of-way, and, as such, the property was exempt from the MRTA under the right-of-way exception in Fla. Stat. 712.03. The trial court quieted title in favor of Clipper Bay for a portion of FDOT’s estate but not the entire disputed area. The First District Court of Appeal reversed, finding that FDOT failed to present competent, substantial evidence that its right-of-way included the land claimed by Clipper Bay. The Supreme Court quashed the First District’s decision, holding (1) the exceptions provided under section 712.03 may apply to rights-of-way held in fee; and (2) because the plain language of the statute provides that use of any part of the estate shall exempt the whole, FDOT established its entitlement to the exemption provided in section 712.03(5) for its entire fee estate. Remanded.
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