WATER LAW

At SMITH ∙ ROSE ∙ FINLEY, we find solutions to water rights problems. We can explain the water law and water use issuesassociated with any property. Our attorneys have undergone special training so that we can advise landowners with respect to all water law issues.

We deal with all aspects of water law, including:

• Riparian Rights
• Mitigation Plans
• Extensions
• Endangered Species Act Compliance
• Clean Water Act Compliance
• Department of Water Resources Proceedings
• Administrative Proceedings before State Agencies
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Regulations

Texas landowners' legal right to take and use groundwater beneath their property is currently under fire. A number of high-profile cases have focused on water law, and additional seminal cases in this area are likely in the future. For example, in the Ozarka case in East Texas, the groundwater-marketing efforts by Mesa Water, Inc. in the Texas Panhandle; and recent efforts by the City of El Paso to pump water from a nearby ranch so that it can be used for urban purposes, have all combined to create a stir in the Texas Legislature. There is a chance that landowners' traditional right to capture groundwater will be curtailed severely. We believe that water law will be a critical issue for landowners going forward.