Fundamentals of Corner Restoration

Course Summary

The Secretary of the Interior, or such officer as he may designate, is authorized to enforce and carry into execution, by appropriate regulations, every part of the provisions of the Public Land Laws not otherwise specially provided for. (1,5)

The Code of Federal Regulations and the Manual of Surveying Instructions are products of the authority vested in the Secretary of the Interior to make such appropriate regulations as to enforce and carry into execution the provisions of the public land laws not otherwise especially provided for.

Interior Decisions are regulations issued by the Department of the Interior and are considered as law by BLM employees. Some Interior Decisions pertain to methods of execution of the surveys of the public lands.

Caution: Some Interior Decisions (previously called Land Decisions) were issued between dates of issue of Manual of Survey Instructions. The Secretary of Interior may, as of March 3, 1909, in his discretion, cause to be made, as he may deem wise under the rectangular systems on that date provided by law, such resurveys or retracements of the surveys of public lands as, after full investigation, he may deem essential to properly mark the boundaries of the public lands remaining undisposed of: PROVIDED, That no such resurvey or retracement shall be so executed as to impair the bona fide rights or claims of any claimant, entrymen, or owner of lands affected
by such resurvey or retracement: … . (4)

The general rules which control the location of all public lands and the fundamentals of corner restoration have evolved from the authority vested in the Secretary, statutory law, common law, and court decisions. These rules and fundamentals are now followed by the Bureau of Land Management.

Learning Objectives

RINCIPLE I. Federal Law, including the Manual of Surveying Instructions,
Governs boundary location of Public Lands.

PRINCIPLE II. Once established, corners of the Public Lands are Fixed in their monumented positions but the Government may survey or resurvey in public lands as it chooses.

PRINCIPLE III. The Court will consider the intent of the parties in reconstruction of deed descriptions.

PRINCIPLE IV. The plat and the field notes are considered together with, and as part of, the grant (patent) itself.

PRINCIPLE V. A resurvey restores the monuments at their original positions.

Course Author

US Department of Interior

Review the quiz before studying the course.

Certificate of completion of the course

This course comes with a multiple-choice quiz. You can view the quiz and take the quiz if you are logged in your account. You can take the quiz for this online PDH course as many times until passed. The passing grade is 70% and above. After you pass the quiz simply follow the page, to pay for the course and print your certificate instantly. A copy of the certificate and receipt for this course will always be in your account.

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This online PDH course can also be used as a continuing education course for the following.

Land Surveyors