Note: The DearEsq free 'ask a lawyer' site is offered as a free informational service to the public and is not intended as legal advice. Laws vary from state-to-state, and in addition every situation is unique, and relevant facts may not be known. The answer to the question posed below may not apply to in your state or to your situation. For legal advice in your state and your situation you should consult with an attorney in your state who is familiar with the rules and laws in your state.
‘I have always had an electricity pole and transformer in the front of my yard which previously only serviced my house (not part of an easement). While my house was vacant, the neighbor (who is landlocked) connected an electricity line to the existing pole in my yard and it now runs down the side of my house (in the location where I was going to build a pool). The utility easement on my deed is on the southern property line, but he used my private pole located on the north side. He has no easement for running the lines across my property. This is a big problem for me — because he ran power lines across the land where I was planning to install an in-ground swimming pool. I’m pretty annoyed, because I’ve already granted him an easement on my property for an access road in a completely different location. What can I do? I’m really not comfortable with power lines directly hanging over my new swimming pool…..’As a practical matter, you should probably try to work with this neighbor to figure out a solution that will make everyone happy-perhaps rerouting the power line, perhaps burying it, or something else.
Question: That having been said, easements are fairly specific. They are usually in a particular physical space, and for a particular reason, and using someone else’s land outside that space or reason is a trespass.
Answer:
Since your neighbor’s power line is trespassing on your land, you would have the right to have it removed, through the action of a lawsuit if necessary. In some states, you might even have the right to remove it yourself, but I wouldn’t do that without consulting with a local attorney first to be sure you know the risks that come along with that.
