WeConservePA has updated its guide, “The Nature of the Conservation Easement and the Document Granting It.”

By statute and by common law interpretation, a conservation easement is a real estate interest and is governed by real estate law, in particular, the law of servitudes. This guide analyzes the nature of the conservation easement and the operation of the document granting the easement. It includes discussion of the mechanisms that assist in upholding the easement’s conservation objectives in perpetuity.

The guide focuses on a range of pertinent topics related to conservation easements, including the relevant differences between: a grant of conservation easement and the easement itself; and, holder covenants and landowner covenants. Additionally, the guide explores relevant issues surrounding easements in today’s world, including unconventional legal theories that have arisen over the years and an exploration of the legal precedent for and against intervention on behalf of easements from the state attorney general’s office.