Case name, citation, and court
Walker v. Quillen
622 A.2d 1097 (Del. 1993)
Supreme Court of Delaware
Key Facts A. Quillen owns a piece of land known as Bluff Point, B. Walker owns a piece of land close to Bluff Point where there is a narrow dirt ‘’public’’ road. C. Implied easement states that Quillen is entitled to cross over a portion of Walker’s land to access Bluff Point. D. Water access was not feasible for access to Bluff Point. E. Walker said that the Court of Chancery erred in finding evidence that Quillen was entitled to an easement by way of necessity. F. Walker stated that the costs he spends maintaining and repairing the dirt road did not benefit the appellate, Quillen.
Issue
Can Quillen cross the dirt road on Walker’s property to reach Bluff Point because of the implied easement?
Rule
Walker’s dirt road had been a land-lock before he owned the property and it was implied easement to cross it for access to Bluff Point.
Analysis
The Supreme Court of Delaware ruled that: A. The Court of Chancery was correct in their ruling over Walker. B. There is an implied easement to use Walker’s road for access to Bluff Point. C. The implied easement had been in effect before Walker had owned the land. D. Sufficient evidence existed in the record in findng that Waler’s improvements to the road were for his benefit, not a special benefit in favor of Guillen. E. They ruled that Walker’s road could be accessed by the public in order to get to Bluff Point.
Conclusion
Walker believed that the dirt road on his property was considered private property, and not open to the public. Quillen and a friend crossed over Walker’s dirt road to reach their destination, Bluff Point. Walker argued that they were trespassing on his property. The court declared that there was an implied easement, and the road on his property was legal to use to reach Bluff