Any Lawyers on here.

I got a question about a old right of way that is attached to my land.

A paralegal might also be able to answer your question.

Questions about real property, and particularly easements and rights of way, are pretty much all dictated by specific state law, so you need an Ohio lawyer. Anyone outside your state, if they were foolish enough to offer advice, is really just guessing.

I disagree, right of way issues can be quite complicated. You’ll need a lawyer that specializes in these matters. I know because I had to take my neighbor to court to settle a ROW issue. My deed stated I had a ROW, his didn’t, so he said my ROW was phony. He lost in court.

This ^^^^ . . . ps, and county, and local easement zoning laws.

If you had a power line that runs thru your property and when the agreement was signed in the 50’s. It never gave a specific footage therefore the right of way would be to furthest point on each pole straight down. It also says they will pay for all trees and even calls out the specific log rule. Since this is forever they would still have to adhere to the same rules right. It also says they pay the landowner 25.00 per pole.

I can give you a very definite "maybe" on all those questions.

If you have the original agreement / contract, take it to an attorney. Sometimes, "The devils in the details".

Who do you think does much of the research for the attorneys who specialize in real property law? Either way it's free advice and as such is similar in value.

I went to an attorney. I was wondering if anybody else has similar experience.

It can be an expensive venture unless you get creative.

Paralegals are not permitted by law to give advice in any State I'm aware of. They are not members of the Legal Bar.

Not even free advice? How about if someone is a friend? Are you going to turn them in?

Under the ethical rules of most state's Bars, if an attorney is aware of an ethical violation and fails to report it, that failure to report is a violation.

That's a dumb question. Why would you turn them in? Friends give friends OPINIONS all the time. No law against that.

Correct.

Ok to keep from going down a rabbit hole and a fight. Does anybody else have a power line run thru there property and the right of way agreement specify a footage.

You say you went to an attorney what did they say?

No fight here. I'm smiling.

Hey said the right of way is from the furthest point on each cross bar. So if it’s 10 ft wide then that’s the right of way. Even though they cut it 60 ft wide.

Most utility companies have a right of way department. Maybe you should consider ontacting them. It's free.

But there going to say x amount of feet but IMO it’s what’s in black and white. They have different footages listed online for different kv’s but again I would think it should be what’s written.

Got one (attorney) married to a son of mine but I'm not one.

Just a few questions>>> Is this right away recorded with your land?

I have seen that if no legal measurements are added to a right-way per se, it can be an open right-way to get to that utilities property (poles, URD etc.).

So, what I'm saying is in the old days like you are describing there are many open right-way contracts signed without specific legals and or footage/measurements and can give that utility the right away to get to that line.

A normal utility right-way measurement has been 20 feet either side of existing line (for distribution line) and 30 feet either side for transmission line (60 feet total).

Was the abstract of title updated when you purchased it? Do you have title insurance? Did you have a survey done prior to closing?

What do you want done with the row? Cleaned, annulled, something else? Might want to have that question up front to save time

There’s not right of way from the road to the utilities. It’s about 400ft from the road and the lawyer said I don’t have to let them in on my property. The reason being is that I built the bridge and the bridge was not part of the agreement in the 50’s so I tell them to go in the same way they did in the 50’s. If they would like to use the bridge then they can by access from me at this cost. I had a survey done and there is nothing. Still the same deed since the land was sold when Ohio was selling land for people to move here in the 1800’s.

What I want is compensation for the trees they have cut that was not in the right of way. They damaged or cut several white oaks and black walnut. They cut them because they was taller and leaning toward the line but was not inside the given footage.

That PPU needs a letter to pay damages and informed that a new right-way needs to be adopted and agreed on by both parties before they access your land again.

Make them answer and live by what you need in that right-way. I also would tell them if they use the bridge and access your land from that advantage point you will press charges for trespass.

I also would send them the bill to be paid in full by such and such date. If not legal action will be started.

Then let that Attorney represent you in court. He'll get his fee from somebody. Not sure about Ohio, but in many States, there's a thing called "eminent domain" whereas the Utility Companies condemn your property to suit their necessary needs. This is a fact . . . and it can turn real ugly.

Hope you win.

They went down to my neighbors and went up the right of way which I know I can’t kick them off there because they have a right to maintain. But how can any of this hold up since the original company was southern Ohio power and now the utility is American electric power. Also the agreement states they will pay for any and all damages plus any trees cut but the address I’m suppose to file the claim with no longer exists.

I know of two on here. Neither of which is qualified or has the intelligence to handle a parking ticket.

You've been given some good opinions, . . . go back to that Attorney or get a new one. Nuff said.

Always more to these things than appears. By any chance do any of these lines feed your home? Is this vacant land? If these lines were put in in the 50's it's very likely they have been maintained several times before. My power line easement/ Right of way is 33 ground feet wide with a 15 zone around every wire. The line is offset for future lines. That means the 15 foot wire line trim zone will cut trees out side of 33 foot ground easement. Mine is on family land, put in in the 50's also. I never had a issue trimming trees, they cut the wood up nice and left it where I could get at it. And it also branches off and feeds electricity to my home. When they put natural gas through I let them cross my land to easement and they ran a feed line to my house for $50.00 the cost of the pipe.

Aep and ohio power are the same.

Show them you mean business and quit buying electricity from them

The lawyers must be l busy handing their guns over.

Southern Ohio power is still in business but was turned over to aep. The line feeds from one substation to another then comes back down the road feeding everyone power. They cut out of the right of way and ruined trees. Even if it is 60 foot. They went down over the hill and cut trees because they was taller and leaning toward the right of way. These were trees around 18” diameter and in no danger of falling on the lines.

Each state has statutes, courts, and a bar association that regulate the practice of law and provide punishment for the unauthorized practice of law.

Only a lawyer admitted to the state's bar association may practice law in that state. There's only limited reciprocity. Normally, a lawyer admitted in one state cannot practice law in another state.

You should get the opinion of a qualified Ohio attorney.

This is not legal advice, but you might go down to the recorder's office and do a title search (or hire one from a title company) to find out if the utility might have changed its name or sold the easement rights to another utility. You may have to go back a number of years.

Finding the current address of the utility is not a legal question. If you went to an attorney, he'd probably pass that work down to a paralegal or secretary.

Jim

There is no easement. Just a right of way. I still pay taxes on the land. There’s no description of width or a survey that is attached to the right of way.

In my state, an "easement" is what utilities have on your land and "right of way" is limited to things like roads and trails that became public ROWs under federal and state grants.

How it goes in your state is an Ohio attorney question.

Jim

Sometimes people . . .

I’d go talk to the power company, normally they are pretty easy to deal with, as far as cutting trees here they can cut anything that might impede their access to fix the line. An example of this here is when a transmission line went down out in a corn field the trucks drove though the standing corn because they had to, but the farmers were compensated.

They got mad at me cause they thought they was going to bring a drill rig threw my front yard to go up and take soil samples. I said no and the younger one got smart and said he had a right to. I said a few things that I won’t say here and his partner told him to get in the truck they have to go. Needless to say the drill rig didn’t come thru my yard. I had already seen how they treated all my neighbors yards. Throwing straw over muddy ruts wasn’t a correct fix in my book.

Oh, then I would say a lawyer maybe your best choice, but it could just be that they have one idiot working for them that doesn’t realize that begin nice can fix a lot of problems.