3. Easements Flashcards
What is the nature of an easement?
A right enjoyed by the owner of a legal estate over another person for the benefit of their own land.
What is dominant land?
Land that benefits from an easement and is owned by the grantee.
What is servient land?
Land burdened by an easement and is owned by the grantor.
What is profit a prendre?
A right to go on somebody else’s land and remove something which exists naturally.
What makes an easement legal?
If the right is granted forever or for a fixed ascertainable duration.
What is required to create a legal easement?
A deed.
What are the four characteristics of an easement?
Dominant and servient land, right accommodates dominant land, no common ownership, grantor has power to grant the right.
What does ‘right accommodates’ mean?
The easement must confer some real and practical benefit on the dominant land and be sufficiently proximate to the servient land.
What does ‘lie in the grant’ mean?
The easement must not be too wide or vague.
What are new types of easements recognized as?
Analogous to existing easements.
What is an example of a new type of easement?
Right to erect a satellite dish is analogous to the right to erect a sign.
What is an example of a new type of easement?
Right to park is analogous to an easement for storage.
Can an easement exist without a dominant and servient land?
No, there must be an identifiable dominant and servient tenement in existence at the time of the grant.
Why must there be a dominant and servient land for an easement?
When an easement is created, it becomes part of the land.
Can an easement exist in ‘gross’?
No, it must be attached to the dominant land.
What happens if an easement does not have an identifiable dominant tenement?
It will be a license only.
Can a profit exist in ‘gross’?
Yes, a profit can exist without an identifiable dominant tenement.
What must an easement do?
Accommodate the dominant tenement.
What is the rule regarding the connection between the right and the normal enjoyment of the dominant tenement?
The right must be connected to the normal enjoyment of the dominant tenement.
What is the requirement for the dominant and servient tenements in terms of their proximity?
They need to be close enough to establish a connection.
What is the requirement for the benefit of the right?
The right must benefit the land itself, not just the owner personally.
What is the concept of improvement of marketability?
The right should improve the marketability of the land.
Who determines whether a right is seen as a benefit by any owner?
Any owner can determine whether the right is seen as a benefit.
Can the dominant and servient tenements be owned and occupied by the same person?
No, they must not be owned and occupied by the same person.
What is the rule regarding having an easement over your own land?
You cannot have an easement over your own land.