Let neighbor use my brand new road

[Superduper]

I think I like this solution. I'm going to tell her she can't use my road. If she ever get caught for trespassing, I won't press charges either.

Of course I am not a lawyer but your posts here are documented and indicating an intention of not pressing charges for a stranger caught for trespassing might possibly be construed as constructively giving permission for access. Denying liability might be more difficult and likely almost impossible to defend against a future prescriptive easement. Having knowledge of a trespass yet failing to take action are exactly the formula and definition of how to obtain such easements.

 

[randy41]

tollbooth

 

[rox]

Stumpfield, kind fo hard to use that reasoning, "you can't use my road but If you are caught, I won't press charges." I do think the best advice given is to visit an atorney and heave her pay for it. Think fo the situation in reverse. say you owned her land and she owned your land and nice new road. If she said, "sure you can use it, but I think I want it formalized would you be willing tto pay a reasonable attorney fee?" What would you say? Then you have your answer. i know i would be delighted and have no problems paying your attorney fee, could be structured as the first years rent, which just happens to be the amount of the attorneys fees. it is a very very reasonable request and if offered to me i would be very happy to cooperate. Taht was good advice you were given, the best on this thread. these tBN members do come up with great ideas, don't they/

 

[WayneB]

Of course I am not a lawyer but your posts here are documented and indicating an intention of not pressing charges for a stranger caught for trespassing might possibly be construed as constructively giving permission for access. Denying liability might be more difficult and likely almost impossible to defend against a future prescriptive easement. Having knowledge of a trespass yet failing to take action are exactly the formula and definition of how to obtain such easements.

You are so right with your writings pertaining to this issue. Court cases are abundant with situations were Prescriptive Easements are included in the final decision.

Most civil suites pertaining to easements normally end up favoring right of passage. I went through this several years ago with a discontinued roadway that was closed and the land returned to the abutters in 1876.

After buying the property I erected a gate to close off the old roadway near my house. Prior to buying the house I had an attorney verify that the road was closed and was assured by the town selectmen that it was not a town road. In 1982 I was taken to court to remove the gate and also by prescriptive easement law people had used the land for more than twenty continuous years without anyone stopping them so the public could continue to use the roadway for ingress and egress.

The court some how decided that when the road was closed over hundred years ago they did not mean one could not use the road, which happens to runs 12 feet from the side of my house.

To protect us the judge imposed a 5 MPH speed limit in effect 200 feet beyond our house. After several thousand dollars fighting this the end result was I could not block the road or prevent people from driving on it. The real kicker is the police or town fathers will not honor the 5 MPH speed limit nor will they put up speed limit signs.

My belief is, “no matter what you do today to protect yourself it will be in the hands of the courts to decide down the road what is reasonable”. Anything I sign now is only worth the paper it is written on and may not hold up in a court of law. It is not the Attorney’s fault! Laws are written to protect all of us, I think?

Wayne

 

[Superduper]

You are so right with your writings pertaining to this issue. Court cases are abundant with situations were Prescriptive Easements are included in the final decision.

...........
My belief is, “no matter what you do today to protect yourself it will be in the hands of the courts to decide down the road what is reasonable”. Anything I sign now is only worth the paper it is written on and may not hold up in a court of law. It is not the Attorney’s fault! Laws are written to protect all of us, I think?

Wayne

Amen. As I said, no matter how much you believe you are right, and no matter what you think you've done to protect yourself, all bets are off when courts and creative attorneys are thrown into the mix. Courts have been known to interpret the law as they see fit, even breathing into it what they think the original authors intended. How one can know what the author intended decades later is beyond me but what I think is neither here or there. It is what it is, and lawsuit outcomes are as unpredictable as they are predictable on their unpredictability. Did that make sense? Unfortunately, when you are in the mix, it is hard to think smart to avoid these types of problems in the first place. Stumpfield should take a step back and consider all the posts here and make a smart decision, not a nice decision. What do they say about nice guys?

 

[CurlyDave]

I think I like this solution. I'm going to tell her she can't use my road. If she ever get caught for trespassing, I won't press charges either.

Stump;

Talk to a lawyer. Your neighbor may be the nicest, sweetest person in the world, but whoever owns her property next might not be.

You are putting a lot of time, effort, and money into your land. Having an easement through the middle of it, with no conrol over the terms is not to your benefit. Think about what happens if you ever have to sell it. If you are right in the middle of a legal fight, the price is going to plument.

California is notorious for taking private property rights away from individuals. Don't give them a gold-plated invitation.

 

[randy41]

what about granting pemission for a specified time period in writing?

 

[ducati996]

I think I like this solution. I'm going to tell her she can't use my road. If she ever get caught for trespassing, I won't press charges either.

What about the gate and keys? if you gave it to her then you gave permission...not worth it and after all the advice given, you should be taking steps to nullify this arrangement ASAP

 

[MarkV]

I would also talk to my insurance agent and see if allowing regular access affects my liability coverage.

MarkV

 

[connomx]

A neighbor at my vacation home took pity on my using a push mower on 1/2 acre & let me use his rider. He was a tennant in the adjacent house. Since I was around a lot I made a habit of keeping the gas cans full & mowed both lawns whenever I could. When I wasn't around he mowed both lawns because it looked nicer. Eventually he moved & I bought the mower. The next tennant didn't have enough money for a mower. I let him use mine with the provision that he mowed my lawn when I wasn't around. My work schedule includes 2 consecutive weekends per 6 week cycle. I paid for all the gas. Despite being a "certifieded mechanic" he managed to ruin two engines and a mower deck.

Moral -if you don't enter into any agreement there'll be no hard feelings later when it don't work out. MikeD74T