Beach lovers were celebrating on Monday after the US supreme court declined to hear a case brought by the billionaire Vinod Khosla that threatened the public’s right to access beaches across California.

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After purchasing a $32.5m, 89-acre property in Half Moon Bay, south of San Francisco, in 2008, Khosla cut off entry to Martin’s Beach, a popular surf spot. California mandates that all beaches be accessible to the public. The Surfrider Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that takes on beach access issues for the public, filed a lawsuit against Khosla in 2013, and has been fighting for public entry through the property through the courts ever since.

Although Khosla repeatedly lost in state courts, he hoped the supreme court would take up his case challenging the California Coastal Act, which requires private property owners to allow the public access through their land if there is no other open route to the sand.

Khosla told the New York Times in an interview that he was fighting for property owners on principle.

“I support the Coastal Act; I don’t want to weaken it by winning,” he said in August. “But property rights are even more important.”

Even a billionaire cannot create a private beach Joseph Cotchett, Surfrider attorney

Now that the supreme court has denied his request for review, Khosla will either have to obtain a permit or allow the public to get through. If he does not comply, he could face millions in fines from the Coastal Commission.

“We are disappointed the United States supreme court decided not to hear this important case,” said Dori Yob Kilmer, a lawyer for Khosla’s companies. “No owner of private business should be forced to obtain a permit from the government before deciding who it wants to invite on to its property.

Martin’s was just one of several beaches across the state being protected by affluent owners and advocates are hopeful that this decision has strengthened the Coastal Act and will bolster their continued efforts to take on the others.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Protesters defend the public’s right to access Martin’s Beach in Half Moon Bay, California. Photograph: Eric Risberg/AP

“The most conservative and divided supreme court in my lifetime confirmed that even a billionaire, who refuses to acknowledge that the law applies to him, and retains the most expensive attorneys he can find, cannot create a private beach,” the Surfrider attorney Joseph Cotchett said in a statement.

“We certainly hope this will send a message,” said Alex Helperin, senior staff counsel at the Coastal Commission.