CHAPTER 822*
EASEMENTS

      *Cited. 136 C. 284.

      Cited. 8 CA 203, 205. Sec. 47-38 et seq. cited. Id.

Table of Contents

Sec. 47-37. When acquired by adverse use.
Sec. 47-38. Mode of preventing acquisition.
Sec. 47-39. Service of notice upon the party claiming the easement.
Sec. 47-40. Giving of notice when party unknown.
Sec. 47-41. Notice considered a disturbance of the right.
Sec. 47-42. Easements for public utility or railway purposes.
Sec. 47-42a. Definitions.
Sec. 47-42b. Enforcement of conservation and preservation restrictions held by governmental body or charitable corporation.
Sec. 47-42c. Acquisition of restrictions.

      Sec. 47-37. When acquired by adverse use. No person may acquire a right-of-way or any other easement from, in, upon or over the land of another, by the adverse use or enjoyment thereof, unless the use has been continued uninterrupted for fifteen years.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7130; P.A. 79-602, S. 56.)

      History: P.A. 79-602 substituted "may" for "shall" and "the" for "such" where appearing.

      Personal rights-of-way in this state may not be established by local custom. 78 C. 133. City may acquire right to maintain sewer; imputing knowledge of it to landowner. 81 C. 137. No user less than fifteen years can avail. 69 C. 263. Whether user is under license or under claim of right is a question of fact. 78 C. 156. Use may originate in oral agreement or void deed; effect of claimant becoming executor of owner of fee. 90 C. 241. See note to Sec. 52-575. Where an individual use is in common with a public use, there must have been a use of the way by the individual distinctive from that of the general public. 134 C. 576. Trial court erred in denying plaintiff injunctive relief. 136 C. 277. No right can be acquired unless use defines its bounds with reasonable certainty. Id., 398. User by plaintiff's tenants inures to benefit of lessor. User by defendants not inconsistent with plaintiff's right. 137 C. 586. Where use is permissive it cannot be under a claim of right. 139 C. 352. To acquire a right-of-way by prescription, there must be a user which is open, visible, continuous and uninterrupted for fifteen years and made under a claim of right. 142 C. 296. Cited. Id., 708. Essential elements of a right-of-way by prescription are a use which is (1) open and visible, (2) continuous and uninterrupted for fifteen years, (3) engaged in under a claim of right. 143 C. 40. Where defendant had maintained mooring stakes for over thirty years along river frontage of plaintiff's property and thereafter erected floating docks also along plaintiff's property, held defendant had not sustained burden of proving continuity of user to acquire by prescription enough of plaintiff's littoral rights to justify interference created by docks. 149 C. 560. Plaintiff acquired no prescriptive right where owner gave him permission of use. 151 C. 458. In absence of finding when use began, no prescriptive rights can be acquired. Id. Riparian owner's rights to natural flow of water of stream through his land infringed by New London's expansion of its water reservoir in a drought held to entitle plaintiff to nominal damages and, unless city acquired water rights by eminent domain in a reasonable time, to an injunction of further diversion by the city. 157 C. 9. Cited. 165 C. 457, 403. Cited. 175 C. 535, 537, 541. Cited. 183 C. 289, 292. Cited. 186 C. 229, 234. Cited. 190 C. 163, 168; Id., 184, 187. Cited. 196 C. 614, 617, 618, 620. Cited. 227 C. 495, 501. Permanent injunction precluded plaintiff's asserting valid claim of right to use private way over defendant's property. 244 C. 583.

      Cited. 1 CA 341, 342; Id., 373, 375. Cited. 3 CA 639, 640. Cited. 7 CA 252, 256. Cited. 8 CA 203, 205. Cited. 20 CA 298, 301. Cited. Id., 380, 384. Cited. 32 CA 746, 753. Cited. 33 CA 799, 810, 811, 814. Cited. 37 CA 822, 829. Cited. 39 CA 143, 148. Cited. 44 CA 683. Cited. 46 CA 164. Although plaintiff did not have burden of proving absence of permission, plaintiff did have burden of proving that she and her predecessors adversely used the driveway under a claim or right. 83 CA 826.

      Cited. 15 CS 467. Use for twenty-eight years in disregard of a no trespassing sign established a right-of-way. 19 CS 220. Requirements for prescriptive easement discussed. 45 CS 515.

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      Sec. 47-38. Mode of preventing acquisition. The owner of land over which a right-of-way or other easement is claimed or used may give notice in writing, to the person claiming or using the privilege, of his intention to dispute the right-of-way or other easement and to prevent the other party from acquiring the right; and the notice, being served and recorded as provided in sections 47-39 and 47-40, shall be deemed an interruption of the use and shall prevent the acquiring of a right thereto by the continuance of the use for any length of time thereafter.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7131; P.A. 79-602, S. 57.)

      History: P.A. 79-602 made minor changes in wording but made no substantive changes.

      Cited. 140 C. 370; 142 C. 296; 143 C. 40.

      Cited. 40 CS 272, 278.

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      Sec. 47-39. Service of notice upon the party claiming the easement. The notice referred to in section 47-38 shall be served like an original summons in civil actions on the person claiming or using the way or easement, his agent or guardian, if within the state, otherwise on the tenant or occupant of the estate to which the way or easement is claimed to be appurtenant, if there is any such tenant or occupant, and, if not, a copy of the notice shall be affixed to the house upon such estate or to some other conspicuous part of the premises. The service shall be endorsed and returned on the original paper, and the notice with the return shall be recorded in the land records of the town in which the land lies, within three months after the service.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7132; P.A. 79-602, S. 58.)

      History: P.A. 79-602 specified notice as that "referred to in section 47-38" and substituted "the" for "such" where appearing.

      Cited. 140 C. 370; 142 C. 296.

      Cited. 40 CS 272, 278.

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      Sec. 47-40. Giving of notice when party unknown. When the owner of the estate to which such way or easement is claimed to be appurtenant is unknown, the notice under sections 47-38 and 47-39 may be given by conspicuously posting on the estate a copy of the notice and serving it on the person to whom the premises were last assessed for taxes in the place where they lie, and recording it as required in said sections.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7133; P.A. 79-602, S. 59.)

      History: P.A. 79-602 made minor changes in wording but made no substantive changes.

      Cited. 140 C. 370; 142 C. 296.

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      Sec. 47-41. Notice considered a disturbance of the right. The notice under sections 47-38 and 47-39 shall be considered a disturbance of the right in question which enables the party claiming the right to bring an action as for a nuisance or disturbance for the purpose of trying the right. If the plaintiff in that action prevails, he shall be entitled to full costs, although he recovers only nominal damages.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7134; P.A. 79-602, S. 60.)

      History: P.A. 79-602 rephrased provisions and specified notice as that under Secs. 47-38 and 47-39.

      Cited. 140 C. 370; 142 C. 296.

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      Sec. 47-42. Easements for public utility or railway purposes. Any right-of-way over or easement in or to any land or water or any interest therein granted by any person or corporation by means of any instrument executed in the manner provided by law for the conveyance of any interest in real estate, which instrument purports to convey to any individual and to his heirs and assigns or to any corporation and to its successors and assigns, a right-of-way over or easement in or to such land or water for any purpose connected with (1) the generation, transmission or distribution of electric energy, (2) the provision of services or operations of a public service company, as defined in section 16-1, or (3) the operation of a railroad or street railway company, shall create a transmissible and assignable interest in land in the grantee therein described. All or any part of any rights therein granted may be granted and conveyed by the grantee therein described, or by any successive grantee, in the manner provided by law for the conveyance of any interest in real estate, to any person or corporation and to his or its respective heirs, successors or assigns. Such grant shall vest in the person or corporation to which such grant is given all the right, interest and title of the grantor to such right-of-way or easement or portion thereof as may be described in such grant.

      (1949 Rev., S. 7135; P.A. 95-217, S. 5.)

      History: P.A. 95-217 added Subdiv. indicators, and Subdiv. (2) re public service companies.

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      Sec. 47-42a. Definitions. For the purposes of sections 47-42b and 47-42c, the following definitions shall apply:

      (a) "Conservation restriction" means a limitation, whether or not stated in the form of a restriction, easement, covenant or condition, in any deed, will or other instrument executed by or on behalf of the owner of the land described therein, including, but not limited to, the state or any political subdivision of the state, or in any order of taking such land whose purpose is to retain land or water areas predominantly in their natural, scenic or open condition or in agricultural, farming, forest or open space use.

      (b) "Preservation restriction" means a limitation, whether or not stated in the form of a restriction, easement, covenant or condition, in any deed, will or other instrument executed by or on behalf of the owner of land, including, but not limited to, the state or any political subdivision of the state, or in any order of taking of such land whose purpose is to preserve historically significant structures or sites.

      (1971, P.A. 173, S. 1; P.A. 04-96, S. 1.)

      History: P.A. 04-96 added the state or any political subdivision of the state to conservation restriction and preservation restriction definitions, effective May 10, 2004.

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      Sec. 47-42b. Enforcement of conservation and preservation restrictions held by governmental body or charitable corporation. No conservation restriction held by any governmental body or by a charitable corporation or trust whose purposes include conservation of land or water areas and no preservation restriction held by any governmental body or by a charitable corporation or trust whose purposes include preservation of buildings or sites of historical significance shall be unenforceable on account of lack of privity of estate or contract or lack of benefit to particular land or on account of the benefit being assignable or being assigned to any other governmental body or to any charitable corporation or trust with like purposes.

      (1971, P.A. 173, S. 2.)

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      Sec. 47-42c. Acquisition of restrictions. Such conservation and preservation restrictions are interests in land and may be acquired by any governmental body or any charitable corporation or trust which has the power to acquire interests in land in the same manner as it may acquire other interests in land. Such restrictions may be enforced by injunction or proceedings in equity.

      (1971, P.A. 173, S. 3.)

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