Company A owns a parcel of land adjacent to Company B's property. For the past 21 years, Company B has openly and continuously used a pathway that crosses Company A's land to reach a public road. There is no written agreement between the two companies regarding the pathway, and Company A never gave permission for its use. Company A now seeks to stop Company B from using the pathway. Under the common-law majority rule, what interest, if any, has Company B acquired?
Company B has acquired a prescriptive easement. A prescriptive easement arises when a claimant's use of another's land is open and notorious, adverse (without permission), and continuous for the statutory period, which at common law is 20 years. Because Company B's use satisfies all these elements for more than 20 years, the law presumes a grant of an easement, and Company A may not now exclude Company B. The other choices are incorrect: an express easement requires a written instrument; an implied easement requires a prior common-ownership relationship or necessity; and a mere license is revocable at will and does not arise from adverse use.
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What does it mean for an easement to be 'prescriptive'?
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How does a prescriptive easement differ from an express easement?
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Can a prescriptive easement be terminated, and if so, how?