Property and Easements

The law of ownership, estates, and rights over the land of another

Overview

Property law organizes ownership through estates, led by the fee simple absolute, present and future interests, and co-ownership forms, recorded through registration systems that grew from deeds recording to title registers. Easements grant nonpossessory rights over another land, such as passage or utility runs, created by grant, necessity, or long use. Adverse possession can ripen ownership from long, open, hostile possession. Mortgages, covenants, and leases build the modern land economy on these foundations. The numerus clausus principle limits property forms to a closed list, preventing endlessly bespoke rights.