Real estate disputes sometimes involve easements. An easement gives someone who is not the property owner—known as the easement holder—a right to use that land. Easements can be either temporary agreements or long-standing arrangements that “run with the land.”
For instance, easements are often used for shared driveways. A neighboring property may be cut off from the main road, so a shared driveway is necessary to provide access. The person on that rear property has an easement in place to guarantee that they can always use the driveway when they need to. The property owner has to abide by the easement.
However, an easement does not mean that the easement holder can just do whatever they like with the property. Here are two things that are prohibited.
Permanent occupation
First and foremost, the easement only authorizes a specific type of use, and it is on a temporary basis. Someone cannot build a permanent structure on a shared driveway, for example, or permanently occupy the land.
Prohibiting others
Moreover, the easement holder can’t prohibit the property owner or anyone else from using that same land. They can’t claim that it is only their driveway and that no one else is allowed to drive on it. They have been given access, but they do not have ownership rights. The only time they can prohibit someone else from using the land is when that use would interfere with their own rights under the easement.
These situations can be complex, and conflicts do arise. Those involved need to be sure they understand exactly what legal steps to take.