Legal Definitions - extra viam

Extra viam is a legal term used in property disputes, specifically in cases of trespass. It refers to a legal argument made by a landowner (the plaintiff) when they accuse someone (the defendant) of trespassing on their property.

The core of an extra viam argument is that while the defendant might claim they had a legal right, such as an easement or right-of-way, to be on a certain part of the property, they exceeded the scope of that right. In other words, the defendant went "out of the way" or *outside* the specific area where they had permission, thereby committing trespass on the unauthorized portion of the land.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Public Access Hiking Trail:

  Imagine a private landowner who has granted a public easement for a specific, marked hiking trail that crosses a corner of their property. A hiker, enjoying the trail, decides to leave the designated path to explore a scenic grove of trees located 20 feet off the trail, still on the private property.

  In this scenario, the landowner could argue extra viam. While the hiker had a legal right to be on the marked trail, they went "out of the way" by venturing into the grove of trees. This action exceeded the scope of the public access easement, making them a trespasser on the portion of the land outside the designated trail.

• Utility Company Easement:

  A power company holds an easement that grants them the right to access a 15-foot wide strip of land across a farmer's field to maintain power lines. During a repair operation, the utility crew drives their heavy service vehicles not only within the 15-foot easement but also across an adjacent 30-foot section of the farmer's freshly planted crop field, causing significant damage.

  The farmer could assert an extra viam argument. The power company certainly had the right to access the easement for maintenance. However, by driving their vehicles onto the cultivated crop field *outside* the defined 15-foot easement, they went "out of the way" of their permitted access, thereby trespassing and causing damage beyond the scope of their legal right.

• Shared Private Driveway:

  Two neighbors, Sarah and Tom, have an agreement where Tom has a right-of-way to use a specific private driveway that crosses Sarah's property to access his garage. One weekend, Tom decides to host a large party and instructs his guests to park their cars on Sarah's lawn, which borders the driveway, rather than in his own limited parking area.

  Sarah could argue extra viam. Tom and his guests had a right to *use* the driveway for passage to his garage. However, parking multiple vehicles on Sarah's lawn goes "out of the way" of the agreed-upon right-of-way. This action exceeds the scope of the easement for driveway access, constituting trespass on the lawn.