Q&As

Can the owner of the dominant tenement benefitting from a prescriptive right of way, grant other parties of neighbouring land any rights in respect of that right of way (ie to cross it for the same purposes)?

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Produced in partnership with Helen Galley of XXIV Old Buildings

Published on: 19 December 2017

The short answer to the question posed is no. Whether an easement is acquired by grant, implication or prescription, it is in principle, acquired for the benefit of dominant land and not for the benefit of other or additional land. See Practice Notes: Easements—use and extent and Acquisition of easements by long use.

In relation to a right of way acquired by grant the general rule is that a right of way may only be used for gaining access to the land identified as the dominant land in the grant. Romer LJ said in Harris v Flower & Sons [1904] 74 LJ Ch 127 (not reported by LexisNexis®) at [132] that ‘If a right of way be granted for the enjoyment of close A, the grantee, because he owns or acquires close B, cannot use the way in substance

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Helen Galley

XXIV Old Buildings

Helen has built up a reputation as a well-respected commercial Chancery practitioner with an emphasis on property and trusts related issues. She has built up extensive and wide ranging expertise in both non contentious and contentious property matters ranging from small scale cases to multi-million pound developments. Helen has also acted in a wide range of commercial and business disputes in areas as diverse as travel, hire purchase, the media, entertainment, IPR, IT and e-commerce. Contentious and non-contentious trusts matters, both on and offshore, are a regular feature of her caseload. Helen is a member of STEP, ACTAPS, the Property Bar Association, the Chancery Bar Association and IAL as well as an accredited mediator. Helen is recommended as “a first-rate advocate” in Legal 500 2015 for private client (trusts and probate), partnership and professional negligence. She is said to be “consistently able to provide excellent advice in a charming and friendly style” and is “responsive, hugely supportive and extremely user-friendly”.