Facts: An appurtenant easement for access to an owner’s landlocked property over the neighbor’s property abuts a river. The river flooded and destroyed the easement access road. The road was relocated along the new riverbank by court order requiring the owner of the easement to reinforce the riverbank to prevent future erosion by flooding. The owner did not reinforce the riverbank. The river flooded and washed out the new road. The neighbor seeks to terminate the easement.
Claim: The neighbor claims the owner lost the right to the easement since the owner did not maintain the easement access road with riverbank stabilization.
Counterclaim: The owner of the easement claims the easement cannot be terminated since maintenance of an easement does not require stabilizing a riverbank on the neighbor’s property.
Holding: A California appeals court holds the owner of the easement does not have to stabilize the riverbank since maintenance of an easement is limited to preserving the easement access road and does not include the construction of an additional improvement. [Schneider v. Lane (2024) 107 CA5th 39]
Editor’s note — In this case, the easement owner’s property is landlocked. Had the appurtenant easement been terminated, a new easement by necessity would be created.
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Legal Aspects of Real Estate Chapter 15: Interference and termination of easements
