Easement

An easement is a non-possessory right to use another person’s land for a specific purpose.

• Does not transfer ownership
• Grants a right of use, not possession
• Runs with the land (usually)
• Considered an encumbrance
• May be affirmative or negative

• Appurtenant Easement
  • Benefits a specific parcel of land
  • Involves a dominant tenement and servient tenement
  • Transfers automatically with the land

• Easement in Gross
  • Benefits a person or company, not land
  • Common for utilities
  • May be personal or commercial

• Express grant or reservation
• Implication
• Necessity
• Prescription
• Dedication

• Release
• Merger
• Abandonment
• Expiration
• Destruction of servient property

• Easements affect the right of exclusion
• Easements do not give ownership or possession