Difference Between Easements and Rights of Way

Easements vs rights of way

The sense of ownership these days has label in them. Unlike before in Ancient times, ownership is based on how far the eyes can see and ownership can be transferred by word of mouth. That is why your great grand parents have acres and acres of lands and it’s really unfortunate that as years go by, these acres of lands turn into papers that are no longer named after any of you and your relatives. In Medieval England, laws on lands were a thing of the future. Ownership of land in those times was based on possessions. If you have a piece of property, it is yours. If you want to have a piece of property then you must fight for it like what Barons and knights do when they conquer lands. If you have found a piece of land not located in the map, then it’s yours. That’s how things work before. There were no battles for legal rights held in courts. There were no police officers to arrest you for trespassing on other people’s property.

But these days, it’s different. Man’s thinking and laws became parallel with the tides of changes and development. Now you cannot just barge inside a property that you like and challenge the owner for a duel or death will come his way. That is considered barbaric and trespassing. You would either be convicted or placed under probation. Even if you want to establish a property that stands on a tunnel of gas line for a nearby factory, you should get proper permission from the court. Another incident would be if you needed to build a pathway right outside somebody else’s piece of land. You cannot just strip the land and create a passageway for yourself even with a noble cause. You need to have special permissions not only from the owner but also from the court. This is a process, yes. But in the long run it’s going to benefit you more than the troubles it caused you. Easement and rights of way are among the agreements granted by the court that allows a beneficiary to have the right to use a landowner’s property. So what are easements and rights of way? How do these stuff works in your legal battle for land ownership?

Easements to begin with are special grant by the court to have permission or the right to utilize another man’s property. The sense is you can use another man’s property without actually possessing it. Easements can grant you the right to build pipelines under your neighbor’s lot so you’ll have a better water supply in your poultry business. Or you can also be granted to fish in you neighbor’s pond for recreational purposes. Even your right to be noisy in your neighborhood can be granted by easements.

Rights of way, on the other hand, is a type of easement that gives you a right to build ways (roadways, pathways, alleyways, utility corridors, power lines, gas lines, railways, and other ways) beside another man’s property. Rights of ways are granted for the purpose of transportation, maintenance, and expansion of services on places with rights of way.

SUMMARY:

1.

Both easements and rights of way are granted by the court that may allow you to utilize another man’s land property without actually possessing it.
2.

Easements allow you to build pipelines beneath your neighbor’s house, be noisy around your neighborhood block, fish on your neighbor’s private pond, and the likes. Rights of way on the other hand allow you to build ways and maintain, expand services on rights of way that are used for transportation.

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