Legal Definitions - nonapparent servitude

A nonapparent servitude refers to a legal right or restriction concerning a piece of land that is not physically obvious or visible upon a reasonable inspection of the property. Unlike an "apparent" servitude, which might involve a visible road, fence, or structure, a nonapparent servitude exists primarily through legal documentation, such as a deed or a recorded agreement, and its existence is not revealed by any physical sign on the land itself.

Here are some examples illustrating a nonapparent servitude:

• Underground Utility Easement: Imagine a homeowner's property has an underground municipal water pipe running beneath their backyard, granting the city an easement to access and maintain it. There are no visible signs on the surface of the backyard—no manholes, pipes, or markers—indicating the presence of the water line or the city's right to access it. This is a nonapparent servitude because its existence is only discoverable by checking property records or utility maps, not by looking at the land itself.

• View Preservation Restriction: Consider a property owner living on a hillside who has a recorded agreement with their downhill neighbor. This agreement legally prevents the neighbor from constructing any building or structure above a certain height, ensuring the uphill owner's panoramic view of the valley remains unobstructed. There is no physical manifestation on the downhill neighbor's property—no special markers, fences, or partial structures—that indicates this height restriction. The servitude, which limits the neighbor's building rights, is nonapparent because it's a legal agreement found in property documents, not something visible on the land itself.

• Unmarked Drainage Easement: A property owner might have a legal right, established in their deed, for natural rainwater to drain across a specific, unmarked portion of their neighbor's land. There is no visible ditch, culvert, or paved channel on the neighbor's property to indicate this drainage path. The right to allow water to flow across the land is a nonapparent servitude because its existence is based on a legal document and is not physically evident on the surface of the property.