Stewart, Wald & Smith, LLC

04/20/2026

Illinois Landowners Receive Final Award in the Peoria County Rails-to-Trails Case

Stewart, Wald & Smith, LLC, a Missouri firm focusing on national Rails-to-Trails litigation, recovered over $1 Million from the federal government in the final phase of their representation of 116 landowners in Peoria County, IL. The firm has been representing landowners who own property adjacent to the proposed Hanna City Trail since 2013.

Stewart, Wald & Smith brings you recent news and relevant blog articles on legal topics pertaining to rail trail conversions and landowner rights.

10/24/2025

Stewart, Wald & Smith successfully represented clients in Southampton, Massachusetts in a recent rails-to-trails conversion.

We are pleased to share a testimonial from one of our clients in the Southampton area.

09/03/2025

We always love to hear when our clients are pleased with how Stewart, Wald & Smith served their legal needs during the rails-to-trails conversion along their property in Yelm, Washington, known as the Yelm Prairie Line Trail.

You can read more about the recent recovery Stewart, Wald & Smith, LLC obtained for landowners adjoining the Yelm Prairie Line Trail here:

https://www.swslegal.com/media/overview.html/article/2025/04/14/landowners-along-yelm-prairie-line-trail-receive-2-7-million-compensation-for-trail-along-their-property

08/19/2025

"SMART's actions are deeply concerning. In at least one case, they are offering our client $1,000 for land worth well over $100,000. This is an attempt to take advantage of property owners without legal representation." - Steven Wald, Partner of Stewart Wald & Smith

Stewart, Wald, & Smith in collaboration with Kershaw Talley Barlow are representing plaintiffs in a legal case against the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit Authority (SMART) regarding its Great Redwood Trail project. The case seeks a determination of rights for property owners affected by the conversion of railroad rights of way into multi-use recreational pathways.

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Aug. 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Stewart, Wald, & Smith in collaboration with Kershaw Talley Barlow are representing plaintiffs in a legal case against the Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit Authority (SMART) regarding its Great Redwood Trail project. The case seeks a determination of r...

07/10/2025

We always love to hear when our clients are pleased with how Stewart, Wald & Smith served their legal needs during the rails-to-trails conversion along their property in Southampton, Massachusetts.

You can read more about the case we filed for landowners along the 4.25-mile stretch of abandoned railway in Southampton here:
https://www.einpresswire.com/article/610354211/southampton-landowners-bring-suit-in-federal-court

06/04/2025

When people hear about the government taking property for public use, it typically comes from a clear announcement of the government’s intentions. For example, imagine the government wants to widen a road and needs a strip of your land to do so. But what if the government does not provide notice to you that it is taking your property or even acknowledges it owes you for that land? In fact, in some cases, the government outright denies it owes you anything for your taken property rights, usually because either the government believes it hasn’t taken anything at all or it hasn’t taken the time to find out. This situation is a bit more complicated...

When people hear about the government taking property for public use, it typically comes from a clear announcement of the government’s intentions. But what if the government does not provide notice to you that it is taking your property or even acknowledges it owes you for that land?

04/08/2025

WBIR Channel 10 News out of Knoxville, Tennessee reported on an important update concerning the rail-trail conversion in South Knoxville.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A group of South Knoxville homeowners is suing the federal government over a "Rails to Trails" project that will stretch 3.8 miles from Chapman Highway to Ijams Nature Center. The project is a federal program that converts abandoned railways to recreational trails.

Legacy Parks and the city of Knoxville are collaborating on the South Knoxville trail.

Their suit is based on a property rights law dating back to the 19th century.

02/12/2025

A proposal to transform 18 miles of inactive railroad corridor within Durham County is getting local attention. The Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail is a planned trail to connect Durham to Roxboro all along the inactive Norfolk Southern railroad corridor.

Although it has been reported that final plans are not expected to be completed until October, landowners have already voiced concerns over having the trail adjacent to their properties. Landowners recently interviewed by CBS 17 shared concerns of crime, noise, pollution, and general loss of privacy just a few feet from their home.

Landowners may be eligible for monetary compensation from the federal government when the rail is authorized to become a trail.

Landowners Concerned About Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail May Be Eligible For Monetary Compensation From the Federal Government

04/29/2024

Landowners across the country who own property along a railroad right-of-way usually don’t spend too much time thinking about the land within the railroad corridor, and that’s perfectly understandable. Often, even though the trains don’t frequent the tracks and it’s become a rare sight to see a train pass by, landowners think the railroad still owns the land. After all, there used to be a railroad there, and it’s easy to assume, because the railroad managed and maintained the corridor to the exclusion of others, the railroad owns the corridor land outright, even where the railroad appears long gone.

However, in reality, the land within railroad rights-of-way across the United States are owned in many ways, and often, railroads only own the rights to use their corridors for a railroad and do not actually own the land outright.

Landowners across the country who own property along a railroad right-of-way usually don’t spend too much time thinking about the land within the railroad corridor, and that’s perfectly understandable.

04/11/2024

We always love to hear when our clients are pleased with how Stewart, Wald & Smith served their legal needs during the rails-to-trails conversion along their property in Kokomo, Indiana, known as the Cloverleaf Trail.

You can read more about the recent recovery Stewart, Wald & Smith, LLC obtained for landowners adjoining the Cloverleaf Trail here:
https://www.swslegal.com/media/overview.html/article/2023/06/30/stewart-wald-mcculley-recovers-328-000-from-the-federal-government-on-behalf-of-landowners-in-kokomo-indiana