State of Mississippi v. RW Development, LLC (Biloxi Casino Pier Tidelands Lease Authority)
The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed a Harrison County Chancery Court ruling that the City of Biloxi had statutory authority to lease waterfront tidelands to RW Development, LLC for a joint public/private pier at Veterans Avenue — a pier tied to RW's long-pursued casino resort project (since branded Black Marlin Casino) — rejecting the Secretary of State's argument that only the state itself, as tidelands trustee, could authorize the lease. The March 2, 2023 decision has since become the controlling precedent that Harrison County courts cite to reject the Secretary of State's parallel challenges to other Biloxi casino-adjacent waterfront leases.
Why it matters
Confirms that Mississippi Gulf Coast municipalities, not just the Secretary of State as tidelands trustee, can lawfully lease public trust tidelands to private casino developers for supporting infrastructure like piers — a foundational precedent for the site-control leg of any Biloxi waterfront casino or resort project. The ruling has already been relied on to reject at least one subsequent Secretary of State challenge to a competing developer's pier lease in 2025, making it the reference point any Gulf Coast casino developer's counsel should diligence before relying on a municipal tidelands lease.
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