Legal Definitions - place land

Definition: Place land, also known as indemnity land, refers to public land granted to a railroad company or a state to replace previously granted land that has since been rendered unavailable for use.

For example, if a state was granted land for a specific purpose, but that land was later deemed unusable due to a disposition or reservation made after the original grant, the state may be granted place land as a replacement. Similarly, if a railroad company was granted land for constructing a right-of-way, but that land became unavailable for use, the company may be granted indemnity land to compensate for the loss.

These examples illustrate how place land is used to indemnify or compensate for land that was previously granted but is no longer available for use.