Recent News

An easement is a nonpossessory right to use or enjoy someone else’s land. In other words, an easement grants the holder a limited privilege to perform certain acts on someone else’s land without owning that land. It is a right to use, but not own (outright), the land owned by another. The party who enjoys… Read More

In April of this year, I published two blog posts here and here regarding the push for private real estate listings spearheaded by Compass Real Estate. In a nutshell, Washington State real estate brokerage firms have traditionally agreed to share all real estate property listings publicly through the multiple listing service. This policy is known as “Clear Cooperation.” The… Read More

In Washington, homeowners (and associations)[1] of newly constructed or substantially remodeled[2] residential projects[3] have a unique vehicle to sue builders.[4] Under the Construction Defect Claims Act (RCW 64.50), for up to six years homeowners can sue builders for damages arising from alleged construction defects. Homeowners often rely on these Defect Claims after the common one-… Read More

Washington has, for years, required the benefited owner (the party who uses the easement) and the burdened owner (the party whose land the easement is over) to agree in order to relocate the easement location on the burdened property.  Washington State courts explicitly considered a common approach used by many other states that allows the… Read More

An easement is the right to use, but not own, the land of another. The “benefitted party” or “grantee” uses the easement area and owns the “dominant estate”, while the “burdened party” or “grantor” owns the property subject to the easement, known as the “servient estate.” Easements may serve a variety of purposes – ingress and egress,… Read More

If you have either purchased or thought about purchasing a home in the past five or so years, there is a good chance you have heard about sellers providing buyers with a pre-listing inspection report and home buyers waiving an inspection contingency. While some often-repeated “facts” are true regarding a seller’s pre-listing inspection report, there… Read More

I recently wrote a blog post here regarding some of the considerations involved for landlords and tenants in commercial leasing. The complex issues pertaining to commercial leasing can sometimes turn into disputes between the parties, and ultimately, litigation regarding the same. While the commercial lease itself will dictate most of the rights and remedies available to both… Read More

Small oversights in contracts can lead to big problems. A new decision from the Washington Court of Appeals, Pacific Shoreline Properties, LLC v. First Liberty Bond, LLC, highlights some important risks for sellers. This case involved a failed sale of an apartment complex. The Court offers valuable insights for property owners who plan to sell. In… Read More

If you are a contractor building homes or a homeowner settling into a new property, you have likely heard the term “easement” before. But what does it mean, and how can it be modified? A recent Washington State Court of Appeals case, Carter v. C&K Contracting, Inc. (No. 40485-4-III), offers practical lessons about easements that can save… Read More