Florida Broker Practice Exam

Which type of easement benefits an individual or business entity without being linked to a specific adjacent parcel?

1. Easement in gross

2. Easement appurtenant

3. Exclusive easement

4. Mutual easement

The correct answer is: Easement in gross

The correct choice, an easement in gross, refers to a type of easement that benefits an individual or entity rather than a specific piece of property. This means that the right to use the land is granted to a person or business and is not dependent on ownership of any particular parcel of land. Examples of easements in gross include rights of way for utility companies, which allow them to maintain power lines or water pipelines across various properties without owning any adjacent land. In contrast, an easement appurtenant is tied to a particular estate or parcel of land and benefits the owner of that parcel. This type of easement involves two properties: the dominant estate, which receives the benefit, and the servient estate, which is burdened by the easement. The terms exclusive easement and mutual easement do not accurately describe easements that function without connection to a specific parcel. An exclusive easement suggests that the right is granted solely to one party, possibly implying restrictions on others, while a mutual easement implies shared use between two parties over specific parcels. Therefore, only the easement in gross fits the description of benefiting an individual or business entity without being linked to a specific adjacent parcel.