Are Conservation Easements Ever Legally Challenged?
July 3, 2023 Mindy Hockley
A landowner may challenge the conservation easement itself, which will likely require the land trust to defend the conservation easement in front of a judge. The likelihood of legal challenges against a conservation easement is lower with the first landowner, who negotiated the conservation easement, but becomes more likely with subsequent owners.
As a perpetual agreement carries a high risk of challenge at some point, some land trusts may maintain a legal defence fund. Many qualified organizations create legal defense funds, sometimes for each conservation easement separately, sometimes one fund for all the organization’s CEs. In many cases, the legal defense fund is rolled into the overall stewardship fund.
