Utah Code 72-5-104. Public use constituting dedication — Scope
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(1) As used in this section,”highway,” “street,” or “road” does not include an area principally used as a parking lot.
Terms Used In Utah Code 72-5-104
- Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Highway: means any public road, street, alley, lane, court, place, viaduct, tunnel, culvert, bridge, or structure laid out or erected for public use, or dedicated or abandoned to the public, or made public in an action for the partition of real property, including the entire area within the right-of-way. See Utah Code 72-1-102
- Highway authority: means the department or the legislative, executive, or governing body of a county or municipality. See Utah Code 72-1-102
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: means :(24)(a) an individual;(24)(b) an association;(24)(c) an institution;(24)(d) a corporation;(24)(e) a company;(24)(f) a trust;(24)(g) a limited liability company;(24)(h) a partnership;(24)(i) a political subdivision;(24)(j) a government office, department, division, bureau, or other body of government; and(24)(k) any other organization or entity. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Right-of-way: means real property or an interest in real property, usually in a strip, acquired for or devoted to state transportation purposes. See Utah Code 72-1-102
- Road: includes :
(33)(a) a public bridge;(33)(b) a county way;(33)(c) a county road;(33)(d) a common road; and(33)(e) a state road. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
(2) A highway is dedicated and abandoned to the use of the public when it has been continuously used as a public thoroughfare for a period of 10 years.(3) The requirement of continuous use under Subsection (2) is satisfied if the use is as frequent as the public finds convenient or necessary and may be seasonal or follow some other pattern.(4) Continuous use as a public thoroughfare under Subsection (2) is interrupted when:(4)(a) the person or entity interrupting the continuous use gives not less than 72 hours advance written notice of the interruption to the highway authority having jurisdiction of the highway, street, or road;(4)(b) the property owner undertakes an overt act which is intended to interrupt the use of the highway, street, or road as a public thoroughfare; and(4)(c) the overt act described in Subsection (4)(b) is reasonably calculated to interrupt the regularly established pattern and frequency of public use for the given highway, street, or road for a period of no less than 24 hours.(5) Installation of gates and posting of no trespassing signs are relevant forms of evidence but are not solely determinative of whether an interruption under Subsection (4) has occurred.(6) A property owner’s interruption under Subsection (4) of a highway, street, or road where the requirement of continuous use under Subsection (2) is not satisfied restarts the running of the 10-year period of continuous use required for dedication under Subsection (2).(7)(7)(a) The burden of proving dedication under Subsection (2) is on the party asserting the dedication.(7)(b) The burden of proving interruption under Subsection (4) is on the party asserting the interruption.(8)(8)(a) The dedication and abandonment creates a right-of-way held by the state or a local highway authority in accordance with Sections72-3-102 ,72-3-103 ,72-3-104 ,72-3-105 , and72-5-103 .(8)(b) A property owner’s interruption under Subsection (4) of a right-of-way claimed by the state or local highway authority in accordance with Subsection (8)(a) or R.S. 2477 has no effect on the validity of the state’s or local highway authority’s claim to the right-of-way and does not return the right-of-way to the property owner.(9) The scope of a right-of-way described in Subsection (8)(a) is that which is reasonable and necessary to ensure safe travel according to the facts and circumstances.(10) The provisions of this section apply to any claim under this section for which a court of competent jurisdiction has not issued a final unappealable judgment or order.(11)(11)(a) Before a person may file an action in district court to determine or challenge whether a highway, street, or road has been dedicated to the public as described in this section, the person shall first provide 30-day written notice to the relevant highway authority.(11)(b) In an action described in Subsection (11)(a), the person shall name as a defendant the highway authority that would have jurisdiction over the highway, street, or road.