The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts recently decided an easement dispute involving a nature preserve and a neighboring landowner in Taylor v. Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank Comm’n (Mass. Oct. 11, 2016). At issue was whether the owner of the nature preserve could use an easement on the plaintiffs’ property to access…
Ownership disputes can arise years after property was purchased or originally deeded. Speaking to this issue, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts released an opinion in the case of Knapp v. Powicki (Mass. App. Ct. Sept. 29, 2016). Knapp concerned the ownership and easement rights over a proposed street located between two…
In a current real estate case, Massachusetts property owners brought an action seeking to annul a special permit granted by the town’s planning board for the construction of a 16-unit housing development. In Parker v. Freedman (Mass. Land Ct. Aug. 26, 2016), the plaintiffs contended the development would negatively affect their…
In a recent case, the Superior Court of Massachusetts took issue with the bad-faith dealings of a corporation involved in easement negotiations with its neighboring residents. In Nicoli v. Gooby Indus. Corp. (Mass. Super. Sept. 2, 2016), the plaintiffs’ residential parcel of land shared a boundary with a manufacturing company. When…
In a recent case, the Court of Appeals of Massachusetts reviewed an easement dispute in which the plaintiff complained of the growing public use of a private way adjacent to his property. In Goff v. Town of Randolph (Mass. App. Ct. Aug. 12, 2016), the plaintiff’s property was located at the…
In a newly issued opinion, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts discussed whether the federal government or the Massachusetts Land Court had proper jurisdiction in an easement dispute involving a railroad. In Murray v. Dep’t of Conservation & Recreation (Mass. Aug. 4, 2016), the plaintiffs brought an action to quiet title,…
In a recent decision, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts reversed the judgment of a lower court in a case involving an easement dispute. In Melrose Fish & Game Club, Inc. v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co., LLC, 89 Mass. App. Ct. 594 (2016), the defendant, a gas pipeline company, constructed a natural…
In a recent decision, the Massachusetts Land Court reviewed a case involving an easement dispute between two neighboring landowners. In Teare v. Stockwell (Mass. Land Ct. May 20, 2016), the parties lived across from each other on a private way and disagreed as to their respective rights to use the lane. The first question…
In a recent decision, the Massachusetts Land Court was presented with the question of whether the defendants had a legal right of access or easement to their undeveloped parcel of land at the dead end of a street. In Diodati v. Kohl (Mass. Land Ct. Apr. 13, 2016), the plaintiffs…
In a newly published decision, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts determined whether easements by necessity were created as a result of an 1878 partition of Native American common land in the town of Aquinnah (formerly known as Gay Head). In Maria A. Kitras, trustee, & others v. Town of…