A U.S. Supreme Court ruling may strengthen the hand of private property owners as they battle Walton County over ownership of local beaches. In a 5-4 ruling, justices ruled that private property owners can file directly in federal court if they feel their rights have been violated by the state or a local government. The ruling overturned a 1985 decision that required private citizens who claimed land had been taken from them without being fairly compensated to go through state courts before seeking relief in the federal justice system. One advantage to petitioning directly to the federal courts would be the cost savings to litigants.