It can be difficult to understand an easement that may be burdening your property or a property that you are in the process of purchasing. It is important that know exactly what rights someone else, whether that be a neighbor, the city in which the property is located, a utility provider, or the Department of Natural Resources has in your property. Oftentimes, these easements can be created without formal legal documentation or documentation that is vague, incomplete, or confusing.
In fact, it is possible that someone else has what are called “prescriptive easement” rights to a part of your property just by the nature of their use. This could be for driveway purposes, for storage purposes, or for some other limited purpose. If there is a dispute over these rights, having an experienced attorney on your side to analyze your situation and advise you on your options, including the option of going to court, is very important.
You may be on the other side of an easement issue. You may have been using another person’s property as ingress and egress to your property and a new owner of that property has now blocked your access or damaged the easement area. You might be wondering what is allowed and what is not allowed. Who is responsible for maintenance of the easement area? What if someone gets hurt on the easement? Who is responsible for the damages? These are all common questions that can be answered with the assistance of an attorney experienced in this area of law.
If you need an easement drafted or reviewed, or if you need help in a situation that calls for a more adversarial approach, please contact Miller & Stevens.
