Also known as: water
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Water or a watercourse under Roman law.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Anika Anand operates a shipping company moving fresh water across state lines. Congress enacts a uniform tax on such shipments to fund national infrastructure. The law applies because the power to regulate commerce among the states extends to transactions involving water.
Anthony Arnold claims a right to draw from a stream crossing his land. The claim arises under riparian doctrine rather than any private agreement. The right is not treated as a servitude because public water doctrines fall outside that category.
Alexandra Armstrong's electric company promotes its water-heating services in promotional materials. A state commission restricts the ads. The restriction is reviewed under intermediate scrutiny because the speech concerns a lawful activity and is not misleading.
Alfred Ashford's manufacturing plant releases gases that affect downstream water quality. States petition the EPA to regulate the emissions. The agency possesses authority because greenhouse gases qualify as air pollutants that can be controlled to protect water resources.
Ava Adebayo owns a water-treatment facility and agrees with workers on maximum hours. A state law caps hours more strictly. The statute is challenged as interfering with liberty of contract in the operation of the water business.
Amber Alonzo seeks a building permit for a home overlooking the ocean. The commission requires a public path across the lot. The condition must be related to the impact of the development on public access to the shoreline.
It denotes water or a watercourse. The term appears in classical sources to describe both still and flowing water used in property and servitude contexts.
Supporting sources
Aqua is a Roman law label for the resource itself. Modern doctrines such as riparian rights or the public trust are treated separately and are not classified as servitudes under the Restatement.
…which may be erected within their respective limits, as follows: U-1 is restricted to single family dwellings, public parks, water towers and reservoirs, suburban and interurban electric railway passenger stations and rights of way, and farming, non-commercial greenhouse nurseries and truck gardening; U-2 is extended…