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Neighbor easement problem
Not sure what a plat chart is? You mean something like a tax map? I have not had an easement problem like the one you describe but I do have experience with land attorneys. You will spend $2,000-3,000 with them and then all of a sudden they tell you - "Oh, well it depends on the judge we get" or something like that.
The best solution is to somehow take matters into your own hands. I don't know how you do that in this case but it requires lots of thought. Maybe you make life uncomfortable for this fellow when the driveway is not maintained. Maybe you fence off some land to hide the mess from you, etc. It seems that if you own the property he has an easement on, you are in a position of control.
You will end up making enemies anyway with this guy. You might as well do a good job of it.
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Neighbor easement problem
By the way, as a person who would like an easement into my 35 acres of landlocked property, it is my understanding that an easement on a tax map means nothing if the easement is not documented somewhere on a warranty deed.
You could chain the property off and force the neighbor to go to court to gain access. The neighbor can argue he needs access by way of necessity and would have to go to court to fight you. This way the burden is on him for legal action. He (you) could win or lose depending on the judge and other factors.
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Neighbor easement problem
My sister had a case where there was a squatter on property she purchased with the intent of developing the land. In the end, she sold the squatter the land he sat on.
Also, like Chief says, if this neighbor has been using your land and there is no other way into his property - the neighbor will most likely be granted a right-of-way since landlocked property is illegal. The only question is whether the right-of-way will include utilities, have permission for vehicles and width or right-of-way.
In my case, I had 10 acres of wood lot with tax map easement from my Dad's farm. What I did was purchase an additional adjacent 25 acres at a town auction. I plan on going to neighbors and offering some land in exchange for right-of-way that can written into a warranty deed someday. We'll see how that works out.
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Neighbor easement problem
Toller, I think I used the expression "adverse possession". I agree that "adverse possession" is very difficult for any land user to obtain (clearly I am not a lawyer). An attorney once told me adverse possession was really meant for ranchers vs farmers where a party had to fight to get their cattle to water every day. Adverse possession requires an actual battle for survival to be taking place.
In NY, my attorney told me more likely in cases like the one described was "right-of-way (or easement) by way of necessity". I am confusing "easement" and "right-of-way" since I am not an attorney.
I gave a highly respected land attorney about $1500 and did everything he told me to do to get an easement for my landlocked property. I had a survey completed, documented the old wood trail, brought it to the counties attention for the tax map. He said it would be a piece of cake to get the easement on my deed. Then when I came in and said - OK, get the deed updated with the "right-of-way" he all of a sudden started backing off and saying there had been a recent case with a "city judge" that didn't come out the way he expected. The judge gave an easement but not with utilities or some other outcome which was less than adequate.
I decided to forego the legal route, purchase more property, so that I could trade land for a right of way with a number of potential neighbors. My only point is that you can't trust the attorney's initial assessment of probability of success, and that you could very well be out of several thousand dollars with no results.
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Neighbor easement problem
I continue to hear people say "you need an attorney" to solve these types of problems. Based on my experience an attorney is the last thing you need. In the end - a judge makes the decision, these decisions always involve "judgement" - that's why "judges" make the decisions. No two judges will make the same decision on a case. And no attorney knows what the outcome will be. They soak you for the bill and back off at the last moment.
Decisions are usually based on common sense - you can use your own. Just don't do anything that obviously hurts the other party or is obviously vindictive. Do things that a normal person would do to maintain their property. The legal system is a waste of time and money. There is always a way around it.
Another thing I think people are afraid of is to defend thir own interest even if it makes them look mean. If your neighbor is reducing your property value then defend yourself. Don't worry about making enemies. That is the hardest thing to do in life. If you defend your property you will have lots of enemies over time. I have had people threaten to kill me because I stood between them and an easy buck.
There are lots of people out there assuming you will roll over and give them what they want because you won't take them to task. They operate by intimidation. They assume you aren't up to the task. I look like a dumb fat old jerk. Look at my pic 13 ( ). The reality is quite the opposite. In one case I had a surveyor's license pulled for 6 months. I don't need to get into other cases unrelated to land here.
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Neighbor easement problem
Cherymax, I agree that all my statements might not apply in your case. Just some principles that come to mind - I get heated up whenever these discussions come up because I have had to defend my land on 3 occasions. None of these were situations I initiated. As often in residential areas where boundaries are clearly defined as in mountain land!
In your case I would think there are few options since this guy (supposedly) has a legal easement. Also I doubt that you will recover any legal costs and you will spend more than $1000 on this.
Questions I have:
1) Why can't you totally hide the easement with trees or bushes - maybe place them on a berm? How large are the trees you've planted? Its hard for me to believe you can't hide such a narrow piece of ground from your view. I recently transplanted 20 large burning bushes to hide a portion of a road - worked instantly, even from a high vantage point.
2) Since you have a tractor how much work would it take to fix the 600' of easement that he uses alone? Wouldn't you be able to swing a box blade through there a couple of times a year and clean it up? Yes, you would incur some cost but how much cost and effort would that be? It would also let the other guy know that if he doesn't maintain the easement you will maintain it the way you want to. You own the property.
Take the money you are going to lose (thousands) on legal options and instead use it to improve your property. Fill, tractor attachments, privacy screening, or whatever. What if you have to go through the same situation with another owner someday?
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