Servitudes Flashcards
Licenses/Licensee’s Privilege
A licensee is a person who is privileged to enter property with owner’s permission, but the privilege may be invoked anytime [by the licensor].
Easement/Define
An easement is a non-possessory interest in land that confers a right to use another’s land.
Easement/Creation
An easement may be created by prescription, necessity, implication, or expressly by grant or reservation (grantor conveys title but reserves right to continue use).
Easement/Must(3)
An express easement must be in writing, signed, and recorded.
Easement/Termination
An easement may be terminated by release, abandonment, condemnation, estoppel, destruction of the servient tenement, prescription, or merger.
Easement/Merger
An easement is terminated by merger when a person acquires title of both the easement and the servient land.
Easement/Abandonment
An easement is terminated by abandonment when a person physically demonstrates a clear intent to permanently abandon the easement. Mere words or nonuse is insufficient.
Easement/Prescription
An easement is terminated by prescription when use is continuous for the statutory period, open and notorious (no secret, owner is notice), and hostile (without permission). Actual and exclusive use not required. The prescriptive period begins when a person starts using the easement without permission.
Covenant/Burden Runs with the Land
A successor in interest to the burdened estate will be bound by a covenant if the original covenant is in writing, the parties intended to bind their successors in interest, the covenant controls the grantee’s use, there is a relationship between the covenanting parties, there is a relationship between the covenanting parties and their successors in interest, and the successor in interest had notice of the covenant.
Covenant/Restrictive
A restrictive covenant is promise to refrain from doing something related to land. Restrictive covenants can be voided [to all] if conditions have changed so significantly that enforcement of the restriction would be inequitable [note: if some…, are not affected, then no restriction is voided. If all…, then all restrictions are voided].
Adverse Possession/Trespasser May(1)
A trespasser may acquire title to another’s property without compensation.
Adverse Possession
The trespasser’s possession must be continuous for the statutory period, open and notorious (no secret, owner is notice), actual and exclusive (actually occupy the property and not sharing with owner), and hostile (without permission).
Licensee/Examples (3)
Social guests, relatives, and friends are licensees.
