1. In 1870 Thomas Durant sold a section of land in the new state of Nebraska to Lily Bell in fee simple absolute. Durant owned the land in fee simple absolute, having swindled it away from Credit Mobilier. Durant then sold the same land to Elam Ferguson in fee simple absolute. Then he sold the same piece of property to Cullen Bohannon in fee simple absolute. There was no land recording system in Nebraska at the time. Ferguson shows up and starts to build a railroad. Bohannon and Bell sue Ferguson for trespass and then sue each other for trespass. Who wins?
  2. It’s 1996 and Dilek Serbest grants an affirmative easement on her 2-acre residential property, Prarieacre, in Barrington to Landon Montes fly small commercial drones from her back deck. Montes records the easement in the Lake County Recorder of Deeds Office.
  3. Serbest decides to add on to her house. She gets a home improvement loan from Sixth Fourth Bank and grants a mortgage to secure it. Sixth Fourth Bank has laid off all of its personnel that used to record documents, and so it does not record the mortgage. Serbest is disappointed in the addition and sells Prairieacre to Bailey O'Neill. She doesn't tell him about the mortgage or the easement. O'Neill does no title search.

O'Neill, not knowing about the mortgage. does not make any payments on it, and Sixth Fourth files a foreclosure action against Prarieacre. Does O’Neill lose Prarieacre, or does he keep it?

  1. While all this is brewing, Montes shows up and begins flying a drone photography mission off the back deck. O'Neill brings a trespass action against Montes. Who wins?
  2. Suppose the bank recorded its mortgage and therefore prevailed in the foreclosure action. Now owning the property, it files a trespass action against Montes. Who wins?
  3. What difference would it make if Montes did not record his easement?
  1. Ballentine conveys to Wojciechowska, reserving an easement for Ballentine to sleep on the couch; Wojciehowska records the deed; index does not refer to easement; Wojciehowska conveys to Schwartz; Ballentine shows up to sleep on the couch

Schwarz sues Ballentine for trespass; who wins?

When Schwartz inspects the premises, Ballentine is sleeping on the couch

“Who’s that?”

“William Ballentine”

“What’s he doing?”

“He sleeps on the couch”

“That’s a strange arrangement; I would not be so forebearing”

Ballentine gave a 3-year lease to Noonan to become possessory when Noonan releases a recording of songs from Les Mis

There are posters of the musical, a book on the French Revolution of 1848, a recording of the Broadway production of Les Mis playing loudly, and a shredded property-law outline strewn around the premises

“She rehearses here and does concert readings from time to time”

  1. Ballentine grants an easement to Ryan Bintz to keep his housepets in bedroom; then he sells the property to Xiaoman Bi,
  2. Bi conducts her inspection and sees Bintz in the front yard:


  1. [photo].
  2. Bi sues Bintz for trespass and Ballentine for breach of his covenants. What result?
  1. Ballentine bought from Pund; gave a purchase money mortgage to Pund; not recorded; later gives a mortgage to Flybynight to finance promotion of a play he’s written “Panic in the Oral Argument”; does not tell FlyByNight of first mtg.

Mortgages:

Not recorded until after sale to Wojciechowska

--Ballentine (Wojciechowska) sells to Lara, after mortgage is recorded

--Ballentine (Wojciechowska) records immediately

--Ballentine (Wojciechowska) doesn’t record

  1. Same as 4, except FlyByNight mortgage is recorded before sale to Wojciechowska, but the mortgage was not acknowledged.