New Jersey Easements, Landlocked Property and Eminent Domain (2026)

In New Jersey, courts borrow the adverse-possession periods of N.J.S.A. 2A:14-30 for prescriptive easements: adverse use of land that is visible, open and notorious for at least 30 years, or 60 years for woodlands or uncultivated tracts (Randolph Town Center v. County of Morris, App. Div. 2005; Yellen v. Kassin, App. Div. 2010), proved by a preponderance of the evidence. On eminent domain, New Jersey's limits on redevelopment takings come from three sources: the state constitution allows redevelopment takings of "blighted areas" (N.J. Const. art. VIII, sec. III, par. 1), the New Jersey Supreme Court held in Gallenthin Realty v. Borough of Paulsboro (2007) that property cannot be taken for redevelopment "solely because the property is not used in an optimal manner," and a 2013 law (P.L.2013, c.159) requires a town to say up front whether a redevelopment area carries the power of condemnation (N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6).

This page covers both halves of New Jersey law: easements between private landowners first, then the power to take private property. For other states, see our guide to easement laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-19. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers New Jersey law on private easements (New Jersey court decisions, N.J.S.A. 25:1-11 and 46:26A-12) and on condemnation of private property (N.J. Const. art. I, par. 20 and art. VIII, sec. III, par. 1; the Eminent Domain Act of 1971, N.J.S.A. 20:3-1 to -50; the relocation assistance provisions of N.J.S.A. 20:4-1 et seq.; and the redevelopment provisions of N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-5 and -6). It does not cover adverse possession of title (see New Jersey squatters' rights and adverse possession), homeowner association covenants, zoning or regulatory takings, federal condemnation, or municipal ordinances.

How Long Does a Prescriptive Easement Take in New Jersey?

A prescriptive easement is a right to keep using a path, driveway or other part of someone else's land that is earned by long use rather than granted in a deed. New Jersey's courts treat it as close kin to adverse possession. In Yellen v. Kassin, 416 N.J. Super. 113 (App. Div. 2010), the Appellate Division put it this way:

"In order to establish an easement by prescription, a litigant must prove elements similar to those associated with adverse possession. ... Thus, the proponent of an easement by prescription must prove an adverse use of land that is visible, open and notorious for at least thirty years. ... The proponent of the easement must establish the elements by the preponderance of the evidence."

Two points in that passage matter to a landowner on either side of a dispute. The use has to be adverse as well as visible, open and notorious, and the person claiming the easement carries the burden of proving each element.

30 years, or 60 for woodlands and uncultivated land

The period is borrowed from the adverse-possession statute, N.J.S.A. 2A:14-30. In Randolph Town Center, L.P. v. County of Morris, 374 N.J. Super. 448 (App. Div. 2005), the Appellate Division noted that earlier prescription cases had used a 20-year adverse-possession period that the New Jersey Supreme Court repudiated in J & M Land Co. v. First Union National Bank (2001), and held: "we find the thirty- and sixty-year periods that are applicable in the context of adverse possession also to be applicable here."

On review, the Supreme Court described J & M as "holding prescriptive easement period established by analogy to thirty-year adverse possession period 'excepting woodlands or uncultivated tracts' to which sixty-year period applies" (Randolph Town Center, 186 N.J. 78 (2006)). A path across woodland or uncultivated land therefore needs 60 years of use, not 30.

Older decisions use a 20-year figure. In Plaza v. Flak, 7 N.J. 215 (1951), the Court wrote that "it has been held that a presumption of adverse use arises from uninterrupted user of 20 years or more, and the burden is then upon the opposing party to rebut the presumption." Plaza stands for that presumption and the shift in the burden of proof, not for the length of the period.

How an owner can respond to a prescriptive claim

Adversity is an element, so it is often where a prescriptive claim is contested. Under Plaza, proof of long uninterrupted use raises a presumption that the use was adverse, and the burden shifts to the owner to rebut it. Under Yellen, the claimant must still prove every element, including adverse use, by a preponderance of the evidence.

Use by permission is not adverse. In Yellen, the Appellate Division reversed findings of reciprocal driveway easements because the neighbors' use of a shared driveway was "at all times permissive in character." Plaza also recognized that where land is "vacant, unimproved land, unenclosed, where the use is casual rather than customary," the use "is presumed to have been permissive."

Prescriptive easements versus adverse possession

Adverse possession transfers ownership of land; a prescriptive easement gives only a right to use it. For title, N.J.S.A. 2A:14-30 provides that "Thirty years' actual possession of any real estate excepting woodlands or uncultivated tracts, and 60 years' actual possession of woodlands or uncultivated tracts, uninterruptedly continued by occupancy, descent, conveyance or otherwise, shall, in whatever way or manner such possession might have commenced or have been continued, vest a full and complete right and title." That statute addresses title to land, but the courts apply its 30- and 60-year periods to prescriptive easements as well (Randolph Town Center, App. Div. 2005). Our page on New Jersey squatters' rights and adverse possession covers the title side.

Landlocked Property: Easements by Necessity in New Jersey

The Appellate Division has listed three ways an easement comes into being in New Jersey: "Easements may be created in one of the following ways: by implication; by an express conveyance; or by prescription" (Leach v. Anderl, 218 N.J. Super. 18 (App. Div. 1987)). For land with no access, the implied easement by necessity is the doctrine the cases apply.

In Leach v. Anderl, the Appellate Division described when it arises:

"An implied easement by necessity arises by operation of law where 'an owner of land conveys to another an inner portion thereof, which is entirely surrounded by lands owned by the conveyor....' ... Such an easement is found only in relation to the boundary conditions existing at the time of the original subdivision severing common ownership."

The court explained that the doctrine "is predicated upon the strong public policy that no land may be made inaccessible and useless." Three practical consequences follow from the case:

• Common ownership. The landlocked parcel and the land the easement would cross must once have been owned together, with the inner parcel conveyed out of the larger tract.
• Absolute necessity. The court contrasted the easement of necessity, which requires "absolute necessity," with the lesser standard for an easement implied from prior use (below).
• Clear and convincing proof. "Proof of all elements of an implied easement must be by clear and convincing evidence."

When an easement by necessity ends

An easement by necessity lasts only as long as the necessity does. Leach quoted the rule that "[t]he duration and extent of such easements are influenced by the fact that 'necessity' is basic to their creation ... [so that w]hen 'necessity' no longer exists the easement terminates." If the necessity ends, for example because the parcel gains other access, the easement can end with it.

How other easements end

Long nonuse does not by itself end an easement in New Jersey. In PC Clark Property LLC v. Halstead Realty LLC, No. A-3907-23 (App. Div. Jan. 13, 2026, unpublished), the Appellate Division restated the rule: abandonment "requires clear and convincing evidence that the easement holder intended to permanently relinquish their rights or engaged in conduct inconsistent with the easement's continued existence," and "[m]ere nonuse, even over an extended period, does not suffice." The court upheld a finding that part of a recorded parking easement had been abandoned through decades of conduct, including fencing the area off and letting the neighboring owner use and maintain it.

Easements Implied From Prior Use

New Jersey also recognizes an implied easement based on a use that existed while two parcels were under one owner, sometimes called a quasi-easement. Leach lists what the claimant must show: "the apparent use of the quasi-servient portion of the estate for the quasi-dominant portion, the continuous nature of the use, the permanent character of the quasi-easement, and its reasonable necessity to the beneficial enjoyment of the dominant portion."

The necessity standard here is lower. The court explained that with a quasi-easement "what is intended ... is nothing greater than a reasonable necessity, and not the absolute necessity required in establishing an 'easement of necessity.'" The clear-and-convincing proof requirement still applies.

Express Easements, Writing and Recording

An express easement is one granted on purpose, usually in a deed or a separate easement agreement. New Jersey's statute of frauds for real estate, N.J.S.A. 25:1-11(a), provides that a transaction intended to transfer an interest in real estate is not effective unless the description of the property, the nature of the interest, the fact of the transfer and the identity of both parties are established in a writing signed by or on behalf of the transferor, or the alternative possession-based route in subsection (a)(2) applies. Subsection (d) adds: "This section shall not apply to the creation of easements by prescription or implication." So the writing requirement does not apply to prescriptive easements or to easements implied by necessity or prior use; an express easement is not covered by that exemption. An easement "obtained for the purpose of exposure of a solar energy device shall be created in writing" (N.J.S.A. 46:3-25), and the State or a local unit may acquire a conservation restriction, including "by condemnation" (N.J.S.A. 13:8B-3).

Recording protects an easement against later buyers. Under N.J.S.A. 46:26A-12, "any recorded document affecting the title to real property is, from the time of recording, notice to all subsequent purchasers, mortgagees and judgment creditors of the execution of the document recorded and its contents." Our guide to New Jersey property records explains how to search recorded documents.

Eminent Domain in New Jersey

Eminent domain is the power to take private property for public use on payment of just compensation. This section covers New Jersey's rules; for the federal framework and other states, see our guide to eminent domain laws by state.

The takings clause is in article I, paragraph 20 of the New Jersey Constitution:

"Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation. Individuals or private corporations shall not be authorized to take private property for public use without just compensation first made to the owners."

The second sentence applies to individuals and private corporations: when the Legislature gives them the power to condemn, compensation must be "first made" to the owners.

The Eminent Domain Act of 1971 (N.J.S.A. 20:3-1 to -50) sets the procedure. Its definition of "condemnor" reaches "the entity, public or private, including the State of New Jersey, which is condemning private property for a public purpose under the power of eminent domain" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-2(b)), and its definition of "public utility" includes "every natural gas pipeline utility as defined in P.L.1952, chapter 166 (C. 48:10-2 et seq.) vested with the power of eminent domain and subject to regulation under State or Federal law" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-2(m)).

Can New Jersey Take Property for Private Redevelopment or a Pipeline?

The U.S. Supreme Court held in Kelo v. City of New London, 545 U.S. 469 (2005), that takings carried out under a city development plan that served a public purpose satisfied the Fifth Amendment's public-use requirement, and it added that "nothing in our opinion precludes any State from placing further restrictions on its exercise of the takings power." In PennEast Pipeline Co. v. New Jersey, 594 U.S. 482 (2021), the Court held that the federal government can constitutionally give pipeline companies the authority to condemn rights-of-way in which a State has an interest.

The blighted-areas clause and Gallenthin

New Jersey's Constitution names redevelopment of blight as a public use: "The clearance, replanning, development or redevelopment of blighted areas shall be a public purpose and public use, for which private property may be taken or acquired" (art. VIII, sec. III, par. 1).

Two years after Kelo, the New Jersey Supreme Court read that clause narrowly. In Gallenthin Realty Development, Inc. v. Borough of Paulsboro, 191 N.J. 344 (2007), the Court held: "The New Jersey Constitution does not permit government redevelopment of private property solely because the property is not used in an optimal manner."

Under N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-5, a town's governing body may determine after investigation, notice and hearing that a delineated area is "in need of redevelopment" if it meets any of the statutory conditions. N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6(c) then provides that "An area determined to be in need of redevelopment pursuant to this section shall be deemed to be a 'blighted area' for the purposes of Article VIII, Section III, paragraph 1 of the Constitution."

The 2013 Condemnation Redevelopment Area rules

P.L.2013, c.159 amended N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6 so that the resolution starting a redevelopment investigation must say which kind of area is at stake: one where the town may use its redevelopment powers "other than the use of eminent domain" (a "Non-Condemnation Redevelopment Area"), or one "including the power of eminent domain" (a "Condemnation Redevelopment Area").

Under N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6(c), a town "may not acquire any land or building by condemnation pursuant to subsection c. of that section unless the land or building is located within (1) an area that was determined to be in need of redevelopment prior to the effective date of P.L.2013, c.159, or (2) a Condemnation Redevelopment Area for which the municipality has complied with the provisions of subparagraph (e) of paragraph (5) of subsection b. of this section." Areas found in need of redevelopment before the 2013 law took effect are outside the new limit.

The 45-day deadline to challenge a redevelopment designation

This is the deadline most likely to catch an owner off guard. The required notice must state that a "legal action to challenge the determination must be commenced within 45 days of receipt of notice and that failure to do so shall preclude an owner from later raising such challenge." The statute continues:

"A property owner who has received notice pursuant to this section who does not file a legal challenge to the redevelopment determination affecting his or her property within 45 days of receipt of such notice shall thereafter be barred from filing such a challenge and, in the case of a Condemnation Redevelopment Area and upon compliance with the notice provisions of subparagraph (e) of this paragraph, shall further be barred from asserting a challenge to the redevelopment determination as a defense in any condemnation proceeding to acquire the property unless the municipality and the property owner agree otherwise."

In practical terms, an owner who waits until a condemnation case is filed may find that the redevelopment designation can no longer be contested, at least where the property is in a Condemnation Redevelopment Area and the town followed the notice rules.

Utilities and pipelines

The 2013 limits in N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6 address condemnation by a town for redevelopment. Separately, the Eminent Domain Act's definitions of condemnor and public utility (N.J.S.A. 20:3-2(b), (m)), quoted above, include private entities and natural gas pipeline utilities vested with the power of eminent domain.

What the Condemnor Must Do Before Filing

New Jersey requires real negotiation before a condemnation suit. N.J.S.A. 20:3-6 provides that "no action to condemn shall be instituted unless the condemnor is unable to acquire such title or possession through bona fide negotiations with the prospective condemnee." The statute sets out what those negotiations must include:

• An appraisal first, with the owner invited. "Prior to such offer the taking agency shall appraise said property and the owner shall be given an opportunity to accompany the appraiser during inspection of the property."
• A written offer with an explanation. The offer must set out the property and interest to be acquired, "the compensation offered to be paid and a reasonable disclosure of the manner in which the amount of such offered compensation has been calculated."
• Certified mail and a floor. "Such offer shall be served by certified mail. In no event shall such offer be less than the taking agency's approved appraisal of the fair market value of such property."
• At least 14 days to respond. A rejection or a failure to accept "within the period fixed in written offer, which shall in no case be less than 14 days from the mailing of the offer, shall be conclusive proof of the inability of the condemnor to acquire the property or possession thereof through negotiations."

The court may dispense with negotiations "[w]hen the holder of the title is unknown, resides out of the State, or for other good cause" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-6). In Borough of Merchantville v. Malik & Son, LLC, 218 N.J. 556 (2014), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that the offer and bona fide negotiations are owed to "no party other than the individual or entity that holds title to the property or the holder of the interest sought to be condemned."

A condemnor may also enter property for surveys and testing before filing, but only after notice "is sent to the owner and the occupant of the property by certified mail at least 10 days prior thereto." If no condemnation action is started within 2 years after that entry, "any damages sustained as a result thereof, shall be paid by the condemnor" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-16).

Condemnation Procedure and Deadlines in New Jersey

Challenging the right to take

An owner who disputes the condemnor's authority must raise it promptly and in the form the court rules require. N.J.S.A. 20:3-11: "Failure to deny the authority of the condemnor to condemn in the manner provided for by the rules, shall constitute a waiver of such defense. When the authority to condemn is denied, all further steps in the action shall be stayed until that issue has been finally determined." The answer deadline itself is set by the New Jersey Court Rules.

Commissioners set compensation

If the court finds the taking authorized, "the court shall appoint 3 commissioners to determine the compensation to be paid" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-12). The commissioners hold hearings on "notice of at least 10 days," and "[a]t least 15 days prior to the hearing the parties shall exchange a list of comparable sales." Their award is due within 4 months of appointment "or within any extended period in accordance with the rules," and that timing is "directory and not mandatory."

Appealing the commissioners' award

A party who took part in the commissioners' hearings can appeal: "Any party who has appeared at the hearings of the commissioners, either personally or through an attorney, may appeal from the award of the commissioners." The necessary parties to the appeal are only those who appeared, but "[o]ther parties may be admitted by the court pursuant to the rules" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-13). The appeal is "a trial de novo, as in other actions at law, without a jury, unless a jury be demanded."

The appeal window is short. The court rule, R. 4:73-6(a), as quoted by the Appellate Division in Jersey City Redevelopment Agency v. MLS Realty (App. Div. 2022, unpublished), provides that "[a]n appeal from the report of the commissioners shall be taken by an appellant by filing a notice of appeal with the deputy clerk of the Superior Court in the county of venue within 20 days after the date of service upon him or her, by mail or otherwise, of a copy of the report; but the court for good cause shown may extend the time period for a period not exceeding 30 days."

Quick-take: declaration of taking and possession

A condemnor that a statute empowers to do so can take title and possession before compensation is finally set by filing a declaration of taking (N.J.S.A. 20:3-17) and depositing its estimated compensation, which may not be less than its written offer or any award or judgment already made (N.J.S.A. 20:3-18). When it does, "the right to the immediate and exclusive possession and title to the property described in the declaration of taking shall vest in the condemnor," although "the court may, upon application and good cause shown, stay the taking of possession" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-19).

The statute then sets a firm timeline for an owner who stays: "A property owner who refuses to vacate said property or yield possession and remains in possession more than 20 days after service of notice shall be deemed a trespasser and shall be then liable for rents, issues and profits 20 days after service." The court orders the sheriff to deliver possession only "after determining that the property owner has had adequate opportunity to obtain any funds payable to him."

An owner may ask the court to release the deposit while the case continues, but if the final award is lower, the owner "shall repay the same, together with interest at a rate to be fixed by the court" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-23). Neither the deposit nor a withdrawal of it "shall affect or prejudice the rights of either the condemnor or the condemnee in the determination of compensation" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-27).

If a condemnor has not filed a declaration of taking within 6 months after the commissioners are appointed, any condemnee may apply to the court, which "may require the condemnor, at its election, to either file a declaration of taking and make the deposit hereinabove provided, or abandon the proceedings" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-25).

Just Compensation in New Jersey

The Eminent Domain Act defines what an owner receives in general terms: "The condemnee shall be entitled to compensation for the property, and damages, if any, to any remaining property, together with such additional compensation as provided for herein, or as may be fixed according to law" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-29).

Valuation date. Under N.J.S.A. 20:3-30, compensation is fixed as of the earliest of four events: "(a) the date possession of the property being condemned is taken by the condemnor in whole or in part; (b) the date of the commencement of the action; (c) the date on which action is taken by the condemnor which substantially affects the use and enjoyment of the property by the condemnee;" or (d) the date of the governing body's declaration of blight. For property acquired to develop or redevelop a blighted area, the value "shall be no less than the value as of the date of the declaration of blight" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-38).

Partial takings and remnants. Damages to the remaining property are part of compensation (N.J.S.A. 20:3-29). In Borough of Harvey Cedars v. Karan, 214 N.J. 384 (2013), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that in a partial taking, just compensation "must be based on a consideration of all relevant, reasonably calculable, and non-conjectural factors that either decrease or increase the value of the remaining property." The project's reasonably calculable benefits to the remainder can therefore reduce the award; speculative benefits cannot. If a partial taking leaves "a parcel or parcels of land having little or no economic value, the condemnor, in its own discretion or at the request of the condemnee, shall acquire the entire parcel" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-37).

Interest. The condemnor pays interest at a rate set by the court on the compensation "from the date of the commencement of the action until the date of payment," but money already deposited is excluded from the amount on which interest is figured, and interest may be reduced for rents and profits the owner earns from the property, or its fair rental value, while the owner occupies it (N.J.S.A. 20:3-31).

Farmland. The condemnor of land eligible for farmland assessment must also compensate the owner "for any loss of income resulting from the interference of the condemnation proceeding with the harvesting of any standing crops or other agricultural commodities," separate from the land's fair market value (N.J.S.A. 20:3-29.1).

Attorney Fees, Abandonment and Relocation

When the condemnor pays the owner's fees

N.J.S.A. 20:3-26 addresses fee shifting in two situations. Under subsection (b), if the court rules that the condemnor cannot acquire the property by condemnation, or the condemnor abandons the action, "the court shall award the owner ... such sum as will reimburse such owner for his reasonable costs, disbursements and expenses actually incurred, including reasonable attorney, appraisal, and engineering fees." Under subsection (c), when an owner brings "an action to compel condemnation" against a body with the power to condemn, the court (or, in a settlement, the condemnor's representative) "shall, in its discretion, award" reasonable costs, including appraisal, attorney and engineering fees actually incurred, "regardless of whether the action is terminated by judgment or amicable agreement of the parties."

Separately, subsection (a) requires the condemnor to reimburse an owner's actual recording fees, transfer taxes and similar conveyancing expenses, the prorated real property taxes paid for the period after title vests or possession is taken, and certain mortgage prepayment penalties.

Abandonment

A condemnor may drop a case "at any time before or within 30 days after the filing of the award of commissioners," but "no such action shall be abandoned after the filing of a declaration of taking ... or after the vesting of title in any condemnor," and on abandonment "the condemnor shall pay the expenses of all condemnees who have appeared in the action" (N.J.S.A. 20:3-35).

Relocation assistance

New Jersey's relocation assistance law (N.J.S.A. 20:4-1 et seq.) provides payments to people displaced by a public taking. For homeowners, N.J.S.A. 20:4-5 provides that "the taking agency shall make an additional payment not in excess of $15,000.00 to any displaced person who is displaced from a dwelling actually owned and occupied by such displaced person for not less than 180 days prior to the initiation of negotiations for the acquisition of the property." Occupants of at least 90 days who do not qualify for that payment, such as tenants, may receive a rental or down-payment payment of up to $4,000 (N.J.S.A. 20:4-6). Displaced people and businesses also receive actual reasonable moving expenses, and a qualifying business or farm may elect a fixed payment of $2,500 to $10,000 instead (N.J.S.A. 20:4-4).

A displaced person eligible under the federal Uniform Relocation Assistance Act receives the amount set by that act "in lieu of any lesser amount" under the New Jersey law (N.J.S.A. 20:4-6.1). The New Jersey law does not apply to the State Department of Transportation, which must run its own relocation program that equals or exceeds the law's requirements (N.J.S.A. 20:4-22). Relocation payments "are to be in addition to the just compensation established in the condemnation proceedings but only to the extent they are not otherwise included within the condemnation award" (N.J.S.A. 20:4-18).

Buying the property back

The Eminent Domain Act of 1971 contains no section giving a former owner a general right to repurchase condemned land that the condemnor does not use.

Inverse Condemnation

When government takes property without filing a condemnation case, the owner's route is usually an inverse condemnation action. In Klumpp v. Borough of Avalon, 202 N.J. 390 (2010), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that "ordinarily, the relief available to a property holder from a governmental taking accomplished without adherence to the requirements of the Eminent Domain Act of 1971, N.J.S.A. 20:3-1 to -50, would be to pursue an inverse condemnation action within the six-year statute of limitations period available under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-1." An owner who brings an action to compel condemnation may recover reasonable costs and fees under N.J.S.A. 20:3-26(c), described above. Our guide to the New Jersey statute of limitations covers other filing deadlines.

New Jersey Easement and Eminent Domain Rules at a Glance

Related New Jersey Property Guides

• Easement laws by state
• Eminent domain laws by state
• New Jersey squatters' rights and adverse possession
• New Jersey property records: how to find out who owns a property
• New Jersey statute of limitations by case type

This article is general legal information about New Jersey easement and eminent domain law, not legal advice. Statutes, court rules and court decisions change, and how they apply depends on the facts. For a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in New Jersey.

Last updated: 2026-10-19.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to get a prescriptive easement in New Jersey?

New Jersey courts borrow the adverse-possession periods of N.J.S.A. 2A:14-30: adverse use that is visible, open and notorious for at least 30 years, or 60 years for woodlands or uncultivated tracts, proved by a preponderance of the evidence (Randolph Town Center v. County of Morris, App. Div. 2005; Yellen v. Kassin, App. Div. 2010). The 20-year figure in older decisions such as Plaza v. Flak (1951) is no longer the period, and use by permission does not count.

Is a prescriptive easement the same as adverse possession in New Jersey?

No. Adverse possession can transfer title, and N.J.S.A. 2A:14-30 sets 30 years of possession, or 60 years for woodlands or uncultivated tracts. A prescriptive easement gives only a right of use, but New Jersey courts apply the same 30- and 60-year periods to it (Randolph Town Center v. County of Morris, App. Div. 2005).

What if my land is landlocked in New Jersey?

New Jersey courts apply the common-law easement by necessity. It arises when an owner conveys an inner portion of land entirely surrounded by the owner's other land, requires absolute necessity judged at the original severance, must be proved by clear and convincing evidence, and ends when the necessity ends (Leach v. Anderl, App. Div. 1987).

Does an easement have to be in writing in New Jersey?

N.J.S.A. 25:1-11 requires a signed writing (or the statute's alternative possession route) to transfer an interest in real estate, but subsection (d) says the section does not apply to easements created by prescription or implication. Recording a document gives later buyers notice of it from the time of recording (N.J.S.A. 46:26A-12).

Can New Jersey take my property for private redevelopment?

The New Jersey Constitution allows takings to redevelop blighted areas, and the state Supreme Court held in Gallenthin (2007) that property cannot be taken for redevelopment solely because it is not used optimally. For areas designated after P.L.2013, c.159, a town may condemn only within a properly noticed Condemnation Redevelopment Area; areas found in need of redevelopment before that law are not subject to that limit (N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6).

How long do I have to challenge a redevelopment designation in New Jersey?

N.J.S.A. 40A:12A-6 gives an owner who receives notice 45 days from receipt to file a legal challenge. Missing the deadline bars a later challenge and, in a Condemnation Redevelopment Area where the notice rules were followed, generally bars raising it as a defense in the condemnation case unless the town and owner agree otherwise.

Can a pipeline company use eminent domain in New Jersey?

The Eminent Domain Act's definition of public utility includes natural gas pipeline utilities vested with the power of eminent domain (N.J.S.A. 20:3-2(m)), and its definition of condemnor covers private as well as public entities. In PennEast Pipeline Co. v. New Jersey (2021), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the federal government can give pipeline companies authority to condemn rights-of-way in which a State has an interest.

What must the government offer before condemning property in New Jersey?

N.J.S.A. 20:3-6 requires bona fide negotiations: an appraisal the owner may attend, then a written offer by certified mail of no less than the approved appraisal of fair market value, explaining how it was calculated and giving at least 14 days to respond. The court may excuse negotiation when the title holder is unknown, lives out of state or for other good cause.

How long do I have to appeal a condemnation commissioners' award in New Jersey?

The court rule quoted by the Appellate Division in Jersey City Redevelopment Agency v. MLS Realty (2022) sets 20 days after service of the commissioners' report, and the court may extend it for good cause for a period not exceeding 30 days. A party who appeared at the commissioners' hearings may appeal, and the court may admit other parties under the rules (N.J.S.A. 20:3-13).

Does the condemnor pay attorney fees in New Jersey eminent domain cases?

Under N.J.S.A. 20:3-26, the court must award reasonable attorney, appraisal and engineering fees when the condemnor cannot acquire the property by condemnation or abandons the action, and, in an owner's action to compel condemnation, the court (or the condemnor's representative in a settlement) may award them in its discretion whether the action ends by judgment or by agreement.

How long do I have to file an inverse condemnation claim in New Jersey?

The New Jersey Supreme Court held in Klumpp v. Borough of Avalon (2010) that the ordinary remedy for a taking made without following the Eminent Domain Act is an inverse condemnation action within the six-year limitations period of N.J.S.A. 2A:14-1.