Opinion ID: 2193035
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Public Prescriptive Easement Predating the Water District's Ownership

Text: [¶ 12] The court concluded that the Town did not acquire a public easement before the Water District obtained its land because, taking into account that the court struck portions of the affidavit supporting certain statements of material facts, [2] the government records from 1870 to 1935 failed to establish the public's continuous use of the land for twenty years or more. Based on the summary judgment record, the court's conclusion is correct. Although the Town produced evidence establishing the existence of a train station in the late 1800s and a public float in 1933, this evidence does not demonstrate usage for the necessary prescriptive period. None of the evidence describes or depicts what portion of the land was used by the public or establishes the duration of the varied types of usage. Based on the limited facts presented, the court correctly concluded that the Town failed to raise a genuine issue of material fact regarding the public's acquisition of a prescriptive easement before the Water District obtained title to land on Sebago Lake.