Explain easement by necessity and easement by prescription.

• A. Easement by necessity arises from necessity (e.g., access to landlocked parcel) and must be proven; Easement by prescription is acquired through continuous, open, adverse use over time; varying state requirements.
• B. Easement by necessity is created by private agreement; prescription arises from paying taxes; vary.
• C. Both are created only by court order; no time element.
• D. Easement by necessity is optional; prescription requires neighbor consent.

Answer: (A)

Easement by necessity is born from the need itself. If a property would be unusable or landlocked without crossing someone else’s land to reach a road or utility, the law recognizes that essential requirement and grants a right of access even without a private agreement. This type of easement is created by operation of law and must be proven, focusing on the existence of true necessity at the time of severance or loss of access. The key is that it rests on necessity, not convenience, and it ends when the necessity no longer exists or other access becomes available.

Easement by prescription, on the other hand, comes from long-term, unpermitted use of another’s land. The use must be open, continuous, adverse (without the owner’s permission or perhaps in some cases under a claim of right), and it must occur for a statutory period set by state law. Because the time element and the exact conditions vary by jurisdiction, the specifics can differ from one place to another. The core idea is that a right is acquired through long, recognizable use, not through necessity or private agreement.

So, the best way to understand them is: necessity creates an easement by law when access is truly needed and must be proven; prescription creates an easement through long, adverse use over time, with state-specific requirements governing how long and how that use must occur.