Tiburon/Belvedere Residents United to Support the Trails v. Martha Company
Facts: A parcel of undeveloped land features several trails across the property. For at least a five-year period, the owner has erected, maintained and repaired fences, gates and “no trespassing” signs throughout the property. During this period, the primary users of the trails are children of neighbors for recreational purposes. A community association seeks to establish a recreational easement for trails on the property for use by the public.
Claim: The community association claims the doctrine of implied dedication establishes the easements since the public used the land for a period greater than five years with the full knowledge of the owner.
Counterclaim: The owner claims no public recreational activities can take place on the property since fences, gates and “no trespassing” signs were installed and continuously maintained on the property.
Holding: A California appeals court holds the public is not entitled to a recreational easement to use trails on the property since the owner’s efforts to avoid public use of their property by erecting and maintaining fences, gates and “no trespassing” signs to deter public use during the five-year period were sufficient. [Tiburon/Belvedere Residents United to Support the Trails v. Martha Company, (October 23, 2020) _CA6th_]
