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February 6, 2026
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On January 28, 2026, the Shorewood Municipal Court in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin issued a decision finding Paul Florsheim guilty of trespassing for repeatedly walking along the dry sand portion of a privately owned stretch of shoreline north of Atwater Beach. In doing so, the court determined that Wisconsin’s Public Trust Doctrine, codified as part of the Wisconsin Constitution and under which all navigable waters in Wisconsin are owned in common by the public and the State holds them in trust for the benefit of all citizens, does not grant the public a right to walk on exposed lakeshore land between the ordinary high‑water mark and the water’s edge. The court largely grounded its decision in precedent set by the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s 1923 case of Doemel v. Jantz, which held that private lakeshore owners have exclusive control over the exposed land between the ordinary high‑water mark and the water’s edge, meaning the public’s rights apply only in the water itself (such as boating, fishing, and swimming). The Wisconsin Supreme Court in Diana Shooting Club v. Husting defined the ordinary high-water mark as “the point on the bank or shore up to which the presence and action of the water is so continuous as to leave a distinct mark either by erosion, destruction or terrestrial vegetation or other easily recognized characteristic.” The Shorewood Municipal Court’s decision provides that such precedent remains binding unless and until the Wisconsin Supreme Court rules otherwise. Although states such as Michigan and Indiana recognize a public right to walk Great Lakes beaches below the high‑water mark, Wisconsin has not yet adopted that view.
This decision is noteworthy for both owners of lakeside property as well as members of the public who seek to enjoy the lakeshore. Under current interpretation of the law, public rights attach to the water itself, and not to the exposed shoreline when lake levels recede. The Shorewood Municipal Court noted that although Wisconsin courts have expanded the Public Trust Doctrine to protect recreation, scenic beauty, and various water‑based public uses, no Wisconsin case yet extended those rights onto the landward side of the waterline. Without such authority, the court held that the Public Trust Doctrine did not protect Florsheim’s access, rendering Florsheim guilty for trespass.
The Shorewood Municipal Court’s decision acknowledged that the Wisconsin Supreme Court could revisit Doemel, particularly given evolving approaches in Michigan and Indiana, but held that lower courts cannot modify or expand existing precedent. As a result, any change in shoreline‑access rights must come from Wisconsin’s appellate courts, not local tribunals or agency guidance.
Those who own lakeside property may therefore continue to rely on existing law recognizing their exclusive control, as private landowners, over the exposed shoreland between the ordinary high-water mark and the water’s edge, while members of the public should assume that walking above the water’s edge remains subject to trespass enforcement.
Florsheim has until February 17, 2026, to appeal the ruling to Milwaukee County Circuit Court. That appeal, if filed, may provide the next step toward further clarification of Wisconsin’s Public Trust Doctrine.
Michael Best will continue to monitor developments with this case, and is available to advise property owners, municipalities, and other stakeholders navigating Wisconsin’s Public Trust Doctrine relative to beachfront‑access issues.
