Old property deeds and a decades-old condemnation judgment have determined whether Florida landowners are entitled to compensation after a former railway corridor was considered for conversion into a public recreational trail. On October 22, 2026, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed a lower court ruling that rejected claims involving approximately 7.68 miles of the Venice Branch railway corridor. According to the court’s opinion in Barron v. United States, published by Justia , the railway had acquired full ownership of the disputed land rather than merely an easement to operate trains on it. The ruling meant that the landowners had no reversionary property interests that were taken by the proposed trail arrangement, leaving them without grounds for compensation under the Fifth Amendment.
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