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Real Property • Easements
PROP#110
Legal Definition
No. Though the holder of an easement may not unreasonably overburden its servient estate, doing so does not result in termination of the easement. Rather, the servient owner can seek an injunction against misuse.
Plain English Explanation
Easements are property rights, and property rights are sacred. "Misuse" is too subjective to allow it to undermine and destroy something as important as a property right. Thus, if an easement is used in a way that seems to unfairly burden the servient estate, the servient estate's owner can ask a court to force those abusing the easement to stop their abuse.
Hypothetical
Hypo 1: Bob owns Blackacre. Bob divides Blackacre into 2 parcels: Blackacre and New Blackacre. Blackacre is the only parcel with access to a public road, thus New Blackacre has an easement by necessity, allowing a driveway that crosses over Blackacre and connects to the public road. Bob sells New Blackacre to Amy. Amy loves the long driveway from her house to the public road and she decides to start doing drag races with her friends. For hours, every day, car speed up and down the driveway across Blackacre to New Blackacre. Result: Bob can seek an injunction against Amy and ask the court to limit her use of the easement to only reasonable coming and going, not for racing her friends, which is an abuse of its purpose.
Visual Aids
Related Concepts
How can an easement be terminated?
How is an easement created?
How is an easement terminated via abandonment?
How is an easement terminated via destruction or condemnation?
How is an easement terminated via estoppel?
How is an easement terminated via prescription?
How is an easement terminated via release?
How is an easement terminated via stated condition?
How is an easement terminated via unity of ownership?
In assessing an easement, who has a duty to make repairs?
In assessing a property law issue, how may a license become irrevocable?
In assessing a property law issue, what is a license?
What constitutes a valid easement by express grant?
What is an affirmative easement?
What is an easement?
What is an easement appurtenant?
What is an easement by prescription and how is it acquired?
What is an easement in gross?
What is a negative easement?
What is the difference between a license and an easement?
What is the result of a failed attempt to create an easement?
When does an easement by express reservation arise?
When does an easement by necessity arise?
When does an easement by necessity terminate?
When may an easement be implied without preexisting use?
When may existing use create an implied easement?
