PROFITS & LICENSES

PROFITS: What is a profit (profit a prendre) and when should you discuss it on an essay?

• Profit is the RIGHT to enter another person’s land and remove something from it.

• You should discuss it when you see someone has limited right to remove things like timber, minerals, oil, soil, fish or game.

PROFITS: How is a profit different from an easement?

• While easement allows USE, PROFIT allows USE + REMOVAL of NATURAL RESOURCES from the land.

• Easement = Use

  Profit = Use + Take

PROFITS: How may a profit be created?

• A profit may be created by:

  • Express grant to satisfy SOF (generally in writing), or

  • Prescription

PROFITS: Can a profit be created by prescription?

• Yes - may rise via continuous adverse use for statutory period

CHARACTERISTIC’s of PROFITS: What is an appurtenant profit?

A profit benefiting a dominant estate, generally transferring with the dominant land.

CHARACTERISTIC’s of PROFITS: What happens when the dominant estate is subdivided?

• Each subdivided parcel may generally continue using the appurtenant profit, provided the servient estate is not overburdened.

CHARACTERISTIC’s of PROFITS: What happens if a subdivision overburdens the servient estate?

• The profit may be extinguished because burden exceeds original contemplation.

CHARACTERISTIC’s of a PROFIT: Q: What is an exclusive profit in gross?

• Holder has exclusive right to remove resource

• Landowner may not remove the right

• Exclusive profits required express language creating exclusivity

CHARACTERISTIC’s of a PROFIT: May an exclusive profit be divided or apportioned?

• Yes, generally divisible SUBJECT to the rule against overburdening servient estate.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A PROFIT: What is a nonexclusive profit in gross?

• Holder shares rights with landowner or any authorized users

CHARACTERISITIC’S OF A PROFIT: May a nonexclusive profit be apportioned?

• No but it MAY be assigned.

  • Multiple assignee’s must exercise the profit jointly and cannot exceed original scope.

TERMINATION: How is a profit terminated?

• Termination of a profit occurs when:

  • OVERUSED or OVERBURDENS servient estate

LICENSES: What is a license?

• Permission to enter another’s land

• Prevents entrant from being trespasser

• But creates no interest in land.

LICENSES: How is a license created?

• May be created ORALLY or IN WRITING

• not an interest in land thus, does NOT need to satisfy the SOF.

LICENSES: Is a license revocable?

• In general yes, at the will of the licensor

LICENSES: Under what circumstances (3 types) would a license automatically terminate?

• Death of the licensor

• Death of the licensee

  • Attempted assignment by the licensee

LICENSES: When can a license become irrevocable?

• When licensee reasonably relies on the license by making substantial expenditures or improvements

  • EG Building dock after receiving permission to use lake - licensor may be estopped from revoking the license

How do you distinguish LICENSE vs EASEMENT vs a PROFIT?

Interest	What Does It Allow?	Interest in Land?	Usually Revocable?

License

Enter land

❌ No

✅ Yes

Easement

Use land

✅ Yes

❌ No (absent termination)

Profit

Use land and remove natural resources

✅ Yes

❌ No (unless terminated)