Easements Essay Flashcards
(16 cards)
What are the four essential characteristics of an easement from Re Ellenborough Park [1956]?
Dominant and servient tenements; Easement must accommodate the dominant tenement; Tenements must be owned by different persons; Right must be capable of forming the subject matter of a grant.
What is an easement?
A proprietary right allowing limited use of a neighbour’s land for the benefit of adjoining land.
What does “user as of right” mean under the 2009 Act?
Use without force, secrecy, or permission (nec vi, nec clam, nec precario).
How can a right of way be acquired?
Express grant or reservation; Implied grant (e.g. necessity, Wheeldon v Burrows); Prescription (12 years under LCLRA 2009); Easement by estoppel.
What case confirmed that overly broad claims may invalidate easements?
Copeland v Greenhalf [1952] – storing cars amounted to de facto possession, not a right of way.
What did Gaw v CIE [1953] establish about vague rights like “for all purposes”?
They can be valid easements if they relate to a specific right of way and benefit identifiable land.
What is the “right to light”?
A negative easement preventing interference with sufficient natural light for the building’s use.
Which case awarded compensation for blocking ancient lights?
Scott v Goulding Properties [1972] – the Supreme Court upheld damages for interference.
Can the right to a view be an easement?
No, it is too vague — see Aldred’s Case (1610).
When is an easement of necessity implied?
When land would otherwise be inaccessible or unusable without it.
What case said easements of necessity depend on the intention of the parties?
Nickerson v Barraclough [1981].
What case showed that a landlord cannot deny a necessary easement?
Wong v Beaumont [1965] – implied easement to install ventilation for lawful use.
What principle did Connell v O’Malley reinforce?
Non-derogation from grant – the grantor cannot undermine the benefit of what he granted.
What does Section 35 of the LCLRA 2009 require for prescriptive easements?
12 years of user as of right, court confirmation, and registration.
Which section abolishes lost modern grant and common law prescription?
Section 34 of the LCLRA 2009.
What did academic Bailey (2010) criticize about the 2009 Act?
That it failed to modernise easement law sufficiently, especially regarding public rights.
