Easement encroachment on adjoining property

Nearly every case I'm involved with the experts prepare affidavits laying out the facts for the court. This is your opportunity to show the hearing officer a clear path to a correct decision.

What you are suggesting is tantamount to telling the judge to figure it out himself. He is likely to take up that challenge and come up with a painfully incorrect judgment (probably against your client).

I don’t see it that way. The judge will have my map showing the easement and the fence located inside it. With the affidavit stating what I did and what’s shown on the map.

I do not decide what are code violations and their remedies, that is the town codes officers job. If I were surveying this easement for the town I would feel fine with locating the shed as it may potentially be in their easement. As of now I would have to locate the shed reflectorless since I cannot access inside the fence on bobs property. This easement is not for my client and does not affect his property aside from the 10’ half which is clear. 

If the judge orders the towns easement to be cleared he would request a surveyor independent from the case to verify that.

I feel any further location by me on the neighbors property is a fishing expedition for my clients potential lawsuit. I get the feeling my clients lawyer wants me to state as an “expert” what they think should be done regarding the potential codes violations because they don’t think the town lawyer and codes officer will require the fence and/or shed be removed.

So Joe wants to sue Bob because Joe's shed and fence are in the TOWN easement. No effect on Joe at all? Shouldn't that be the towns job. Wow, Joe has some issues.

I agree that you should not sign any statement about "what should be done" regarding the town codes. Stick to your survey.

Around here, there are storm easements down most subdivision lot lines but fences are commonly erected on the property lines with no issue.  Locating things that are not on the property you are surveying was not in the original scope of services I'm guessing.  This is an opportunity to make a pile of cash.  Prices go way up when people get difficult.  

These two are well into 6 figures fighting with each other across various properties. It’s personal for them. They’re on Facebook, the local radio, the local paper. I’d rather not insert myself further and have any of that pointed in my direction. Regardless of the opportunity to make more money I see this as my exit. 

Where does it say a fence can't be built in a drainage easement? Is it explicit in the town codes?Are you an expert on the town codes? Tell these childish people they have your survey and you will be providing no more services for them. You would regret enabling this kind of behavior.

Posted by: @geomatique

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Joes lawyer calls and wants me to locate the shed and sign an affidavit for court stating I located the fence and shed in the easement and they should be removed as it’s against town codes.

Posted by: @geomatique

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These two are well into 6 figures fighting with each other across various properties.

You're missing a good business opportunity. You could tell them you prepare court exhibits and affidavits for 5x the cost of a survey. But your affidavit will state only that you have located the shed relative to the easement. Interpreting town ordinances is not included. The result will either be good for business or get you off the hook which is what you want anyway.

As mapping experts we surveyors forget that a lot of people just cannot comprehend a map. A map might as well be hieroglyphics to them. A great many people of this sort are attorneys, and attorneys become judges. 

Why do legal descriptions always need to be in words? The exhibit map should do. But if one of Exhibit A or Exhibit B gets jettisoned, it is always the map, isn't it? Check out any one of the case law Reporters. Three inch thick volumes of fine print case law, maybe a dozen sketches per thousand pages. Lawyers and courts deal in words, not pictures. 

So I would not object to a worded statement summarizing the results of a survey. Nevertheless, I would be very careful about the exact wording- just as I would with a legal description.   

No to code enforcement statements. The affidavit shouldn't be an issue, reference the survey map and state what you did.

Be careful about remote sensing, there are statutes that limit what can be done.

Sounds like the age-old story of Joe and Bob.  Bob's ex-wife is now Joe's wife.  Joe wants Bob to take her back.  Until that happens it is law-suit-city.

@geomatique I read your first post as saying flat no to the affidavit. It seems a bit more nuanced than that. If you have no expertise related to the ordinance stay away from it. You will need to provide an affidavit regarding your survey and related observations (assuming you are serving as an expert).

As for the statements saying not to speak to the ordinance..

While I agree being a Surveyor may not qualify a person as an expert in a given ordinance, it also does not preclude it....

Yes I didn’t want to be involved at all at first. The situation is deteriorating quickly, this evening I learned that the town blocked access to my clients lot at the road with backhoes, plow trucks and set up a police tower. 

@geomatique 

Wow. 6 figs.  That's almost where you want to have a severability clause and NDA to you as a company to avoid the potential negative blowback from these two yutzes. Granted you're beholden to the laws of the surveyor client relationship, but jeezlouise, it's. It like they're not doing this intentionally.

I've adopted a fairly rigid position of "Let's not make lawyers any more money, at all if possible. Seriously. "

Seems like they've got a hobby of dragging unsuspecting people into their cockamamie BS like those Duke brothers did back in the 80s...

Somanombatches!

I agree with Norman_Oklahoma regarding the vast differences in folk's ability to interpret maps.  There's something about scale that does not compute with some folks and it seems to be independent of their level of education.