Unisource Commercial v. Joseph Chung

Summary

This case involved a dispute over a voluntary easement of right of way established in 1924 in favor of Francisco Hidalgo's property. Petitioner Unisource, current owner of the servient estate, sought to cancel the easement claiming the dominant estate (now owned by respondents Chung brothers) has adequate access to a public road. The Supreme Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' decision dismissing the petition, ruling that voluntary easements cannot be extinguished merely because the dominant estate has alternative access to a public road. Unlike legal easements, voluntary easements can only be extinguished by mutual agreement or renunciation by the dominant estate owner. The Court emphasized that voluntary easements are contractual in nature and bind heirs and assigns, surviving even when the necessity that originally justified them no longer exists.