Railroad Utility Easement Question

SC
Sean Cooley
Mon, Jun 2, 2025 6:00 PM

Hi All,
We have a member who recently ran into the following issue and would like to see if anyone has any guidance for them:

Does anyone have experience clearing latent railroad utility easements from the dominant parcel?  Or have a recommendation for an attorney who specializes in railroad property issues?  We are working on a federal project and need to certify we have clear title.  We have researched back to the National Archives and don’t have a clear answer on whether their easements were reserved, but are now to the point of having to prove the RR doesn’t have any legacy rights.  All suggestions are welcome.

Thanks,
Sean

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Sean Cooley (he/him)
Associate Counsel
International Municipal Lawyers Association
P: (202) 466-5424
D: (202) 742-1914
51 Monroe St. Suite 404 Rockville, MD, 20850
Plan Ahead! See IMLA’s upcoming eventshttps://imla.org/events/, calls and programming.

Hi All, We have a member who recently ran into the following issue and would like to see if anyone has any guidance for them: Does anyone have experience clearing latent railroad utility easements from the dominant parcel? Or have a recommendation for an attorney who specializes in railroad property issues? We are working on a federal project and need to certify we have clear title. We have researched back to the National Archives and don’t have a clear answer on whether their easements were reserved, but are now to the point of having to prove the RR doesn’t have any legacy rights. All suggestions are welcome. Thanks, Sean [logo]<https://imla.org/> [facebook icon]<https://www.facebook.com/InternationalMunicipalLawyersAssociation/>[twitter icon]<https://twitter.com/imlalegal>[linkedin icon]<https://www.linkedin.com/company/international-municipal-lawyers-association-inc./> Sean Cooley (he/him) Associate Counsel International Municipal Lawyers Association P: (202) 466-5424 D: (202) 742-1914 51 Monroe St. Suite 404 Rockville, MD, 20850 Plan Ahead! See IMLA’s upcoming events<https://imla.org/events/>, calls and programming.