Legal Question in Real Estate Law in Louisiana

We live in Louisiana. We have to cross our neighbors bridge to access our house. We have been granted servitude of passage. We have made repairs to the bridge over the years without asking the bridge owner for any reimbursement. Recently the bridge has become more and more deteriorated. My husband who is in the construction business offered to provide the labor for the bridge repairs if the owner of the bridge would provide the materials. He refused. My husband withdrew the offer. That was when the bridge owner, who by the way has another means of access to his house, decided to tear up the bridge. We arrrived home from work on the day of the demolition and attempted to access our home via his "other" route. He refused us access. That was on May 25, 2009. We immediately attempted to file a restraining order requesting access to our home until the issue was settled. The judge advised this was a "money" issue and we should repiar the bridge and sue him for the costs. This seemed to me to be exactly what the bridge owner wanted to happen. Now, the owner of the bridge, has decided to sue us for past and future repairs to his bridge. We know that the amount he claims to have spent on the repairs is bogus. In the meantime we have decided to build our own bridge, the materials and the machinery contractor are scheduled..

My question is does he have a case?


Asked on 10/13/09, 8:59 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Nick Pizzolatto, Jr. Pizzolatto Law Office

You both have a case. A land locked home owner has the right to the nearest access to his property that does not present an undue burden on the landowner whose property is used for access. If you are the only one using the bridge all the time, and I am not talking about occasional use by the landowner, then you are responsible for keeping it up. If several persons are using it, then they must share. If the right of passage is granted by a document, then the document may say who maintains the right of way. I suspect the Judge will want you and the landowner to settle this by compromise.

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Answered on 10/18/09, 1:30 pm


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