Land Use Restrictions-Easements

The way that landowners are restricted as to how they can use their land
Easements-Nonpossessory to use the land. Usually but not always Rights of way (the right to cross someones land). An easement is not revocable. It is an interest in land until it terminates
1. Servitudes-Private land use agreement
2. a. Dominant Estate-the land benefitted by the easement; or
3. b. Servient Estate-the estate burdened by the easement (this in effect is limiting the owners right to use the land; limits owners right to exclude)
4. Easement appertenant- Benefits the [easement] holder in use of the dominant estate
5. Easement in gross-Benefits the holder personally, not in benefit to the estate. Not connected to the estate instead connected to the holder of the easement personally.
6. Profit-the right to access someone's ;and and extract resources. Ex going to someone's land to collect water. and extracting the resource is all they can do
7. Make sure to distinguish easements from covenants because they are both servitudes
License-a revocable right to use anthers land. It can be revoked at any time
Negative Easement-authorizes the holder to prevent someone from doing something. Stopping the landowner from using their land in a particular way
1. was an easement created/How do you create an easement? 5 ways:
1. what is the scope of the easement? What can you do w/the easement
  1. 3. Was the easement terminated/how do you terminate an easement. 5 wats
    1. 1. Express release- Holder of easement executes a formal release. Formal because its in writing. Saying we're done
    2. 2. Expiration-an easement can expire at its stated termination point
    3. 3. Merger-An easement ends if the dominant and servant land come under the same owner. They merge into 1 and easement is extinguished. You can't have an easement over your own land by definition an easement requires 2 separate parties
    4. 4. Abandonment aka estoppel- If the holder of the easement does some act to relinquish the easement and the servant tenant is going to rely on that abandonment detrimentally.
    5. 5. Prescription- terminating the easement by an adverse act
  2. Scope of an easement is defined by it's purpose-courts will look to the reasonableness of the use and the intent of the original parties to the easement.When the language used to create the easement is too general to determine the specific purpose of the easement, ambiguities are resolved in favor of the grantee.
  3. The scope of an easement by necessity or implication is determined by the extent of the necessity. In other words, courts examine the circumstances surrounding the easement and will consider the easement’s future foreseeable use, so long as any changes in use are reasonable.
2. 1 implied easements: not expressed. not put into writing. Created by the circumstances
3. 2. Easement by estoppel-created when the grantor of a license is estopped from revoking it. License becomes irrevocable when the grantee of the license has come to rely on using what it was licensed for/relying on promise. Look for detrimental reliance. Ex money spent to improve the land.
4. 3 Easement implied by prior use-That use has to be continuous, apparent (not hiding use), and reasonably necessary
5. Express easment- Easement created by an express grant. It must be put into writing in order to satisfy the statute of frauds
6. 4 Easement implied by necessity-An easement by necessity is generally created only when property is virtually useless (e.g., landlocked) without the benefit of an easement across neighboring property. In addition, in order for an easement by necessity to be created, both the dominant and servient estates must have been under common ownership in the past and the necessity must have arisen at the time that the property was severed and the two estates were created. However, unlike an easement by implication, a quasi easement need not have existed at the time that both estates were under common ownership (i.e., there need not be a showing of prior use).
7. 5 Easements by prescription -Easements can be obtained by prescription similarly to the way land can be acquired by adverse possession. There must be continuous, actual, open, and hostile use for the statutory period (or 20 years). Unlike adverse possession, the use need not be exclusive (such as a public easement to access a beach). The scope of an easement by prescription is limited to the nature and extent of the adverse use.

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Land Use Restrictions-Easements

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	Created by ditzymuffin about 10 years ago