Title 60. Property
§601. Definition of property.
The ownership of a thing is the right of one or more persons to possess and use it to the exclusion of others. In this Chapter the thing of which there may be ownership is called property.
R.L.1910, § 6586.
§602. Ownership, what subject to.
There may be ownership of all inanimate things which are capable of appropriation, or of manual delivery; of all domestic animals; of all obligations; of such products of labor or skill, as the composition of an author, the good will of a business, trade marks and signs, and of rights created or granted by statute.
R.L.1910, § 6587.
§603. Wild animals may be owned, when.
Animals, wild by nature, are the subjects of ownership while living only when on the land of the person claiming them, or when tamed, or taken and held in possession, or disabled and immediately pursued.
R.L.1910, § 6588.
§605. Real property defined.
Real or immovable property consists of:
1. Land.
2. That which is affixed to land.
3. That which is incidental or appurtenant to land.
4. That which is immovable by law.
R.L.1910, § 6590.
§606. Land defined.
Land is the solid material of the earth, whatever may be the ingredients of which it is composed, whether soil, rock or other substance. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6591.
R.L.1910, § 6591.
§607. Fixtures defined.
A thing is deemed to be affixed to land when it is attached to it by roots, as in the case of trees, vines or shrubs, or embedded in it, as in the case of walls, or permanently resting upon it, as in the case of buildings, or permanently attached to what is thus permanent, as by means of cement, plaster, nails, bolts or screws. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6592.
R.L.1910, § 6592.
§608. Appurtenances defined.
A thing is deemed to be incidental or appurtenant to land when it is by right used with the land for its benefit, as in the case of a way or watercourse, or of a passage for light, air or heat, from or across the land of another. Sluice boxes, flumes, hose, pipes, railway tracks, cars, blacksmith shops, mills, and all other machinery or tools used in working or developing a mine, are to be deemed affixed to the mine. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6593.
R.L.1910, § 6593.
§609. Personal property defined.
Every kind of property that is not real is personal. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6594.
R.L.1910, § 6594.
§6021. Real property, what law governs.
Real property within this state is governed by the law of this state, except where the title is in the United States.
R.L.1910, § 6595.
§6022. Classification as to duration.
Estates in real property, in respect to the duration of their enjoyment, are either:
1. Estates of inheritance, or perpetual estates.
2. Estates for life.
3. Estates for years; or,
4. Estates at will.
R.L.1910, § 6596.
§6023. Estate in fee defined.
Every estate of inheritance is a fee, and every such estate, when not defeasible or conditional, is a fee simple or an absolute fee.
R.L.1910, § 6597.
§6024. Estates tail abolished.
Estates tail are abolished; and every estate which would be at common law adjudged to be a fee tail is a fee simple, and if no valid remainder is limited thereon, is a fee simple absolute.
R.L.1910, § 6598.
§6025. Limitation of remainder in tail.
Where a remainder in fee is limited upon any estate, which would by the common law be adjudged a fee tail, such remainder is valid as a contingent limitation upon a fee, and vests in possession on the death of the first taker, without issue living at the time of his death.
R.L.1910, § 6599.
§6026. Certain estates defined.
Estates of inheritance and for life are called estates of freehold; estates for years are chattels real; and estates at will are chattel interests, but are not liable as such to sale on execution.
R.L.1910, § 6600.
§6027. Estate pour autre vie.
An estate during the life of a third person, whether limited to heirs or otherwise, is a freehold.
R.L.1910, § 6601.
§6028. Particular estate not necessary to remainder.
A future estate may be limited by the act of the party to commence in possession at a future day, either without the intervention of a precedent estate, or on the termination, by lapse of time, or otherwise, of a precedent estate, created at the same time.
R.L.1910, § 6602.
§6029. Reversion defined.
The reversion is the residue of an estate left, by operation of law, in the grantor, or his successors, or in the successors of a testator, commencing in possession on the determination of a particular estate granted or devised.
§6030. Remainder defined.
When a future estate, other than a reversion, is dependent on a precedent estate, it may be called a remainder, and may be created and transferred by that name.
§6031. Suspension of alienation.
The absolute power of alienation shall not be suspended, by any limitation or condition whatever, for a longer period than during the continuance of the lives of persons in being at the creation of the limitation or condition plus twentyone (21) years, except as provided in Section 34 of Title 60 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
R.L.1910, § 6605; Laws 1977, c. 5, § 1.
§6032. Suspension of ownership limited.
The absolute ownership of a term of years cannot be suspended for a longer period than the absolute power of alienation can be suspended in respect to a fee.
Laws 1941, p. 266, § 2.
§6033. Suspension further defined.
The suspension of all power to alienate the subject of the trust, other than a power to exchange it for other property to be held upon the same trust, or to sell it and reinvest the proceeds to be held under the same trust, is a suspension of the power of alienation within the meaning of the second preceding section.
R.L.1910, § 6607.
§6034. Contingent remainder in fee, on prior remainder.
A contingent remainder in fee may be created on a prior remainder in fee, to take effect in the event that the persons to whom the first remainder is limited die under the age of twentyone (21) years, or upon any other contingency by which the estate of such persons may be determined before they attain majority.
R.L.1910, § 6608.
§6035. Future estates.
Subject to the rules of this chapter, a freehold estate, as well as an estate for years, may be created to commence at a future day; an estate for life may be created in a term of years, and a remainder limited thereon; a remainder of a freehold or an estate for years, either contingent or vested, may be created, expectant on the determination of a term of years; and a fee may be limited on a fee, upon a contingency, which if it should occur, must happen within the period prescribed herein.
R.L.1910, § 6609.
§6036. Certain limitations of estates void.
Successive estates for life cannot be limited, except to persons in being at the creation thereof, and all life estates subsequent to those of persons in being are void; and upon the death of those persons, the remainder, if valid in its creation, takes effect in the same manner as if no other life estate had been created.
R.L.1910, § 6610.
§60-36.1. Death of life tenant - Prima facie evidence.
In the event of the death of a life tenant leaving an estate subject to probate, a certified copy of Letters Testamentary or of Administration shall constitute prima facie evidence of the life tenant's death.
Added by Laws 1992, c. 395, § 14, eff. Sept. 1, 1992.
§6037. Remainder on successive lives must be in fee.
No remainder can be created upon successive estates for life, provided for in the preceding section, unless such remainder is in fee; nor can a remainder be created upon such estate in a term for years unless it is for the whole residue of such term.
R.L.1910, § 6611.
§6038. Contingent remainder on term of years.
A contingent remainder cannot be created on a term of years, unless the nature of the contingency on which it is limited is such that the remainder must vest an interest during the continuance or at the termination of lives in being at the creation of such remainder.
R.L.1910, § 6612.
§6039. Estate for life limited as remainder.
No estate for life can be limited as a remainder on a term of years, except to a person in being at the creation of such estate.
R.L.1910, § 6613.
§6041. Remainder in fee to heirs after life estate.
When a remainder is limited to the heirs, or heirs of the body, of a person to whom a life estate in the same property is given, the persons who, on the termination of the life estate, are the successors or heirs of the body of the owner for life, are entitled to take by virtue of the remainder so limited to them, and not as mere successors of the owner for life.
R.L.1910, § 6615.
§6042. Remainder not contingent.
When a remainder on an estate for life or for years is not limited on a contingency defeating or avoiding such precedent estate, it is to be deemed intended to take effect only on the death of the first taker, or the expiration, by lapse of time, of such term of years.
R.L.1910, § 6616.
§6043. Future estate after unexecuted power.
A general or special power of appointment does not prevent the vesting of a future estate, limited to take effect in case such power is not executed.
R.L.1910, § 6617.
§6044. Termination of estate at will.
A tenancy or other estate at will, however created, may be terminated by the landlord's giving notice to the tenant, in the manner prescribed by the next section, to remove from the premises within a period specified in the notice, of not less than one (1) month except as provided in the chapter on "Landlord and Tenant."
R.L.1910, § 6618.
§6045. Notice of termination.
The notice prescribed by the last section must be in writing, and must be served by delivering the same to the tenant, or to some person of discretion residing on the premises; or if neither can, with reasonable diligence, be found, the notice may be served by affixing it on a conspicuous part of the premises, where it may be conveniently read.
R.L.1910, § 6619.
§6046. Action after notice.
After the notice prescribed by the two preceding sections has been served in the manner therein directed, and the period specified by such notice has expired, but not before, the landlord may reenter or proceed according to law to recover possession.
R.L.1910, § 6620.
§6047. Reentry, notice of.
Whenever the right of reentry is given to a grantor or lessor in any grant or lease, or otherwise, such reentry may be made at any time after the right has accrued upon three (3) days' previous written notice of intention to reenter, served in the mode prescribed by Section 6619.
R.L.1910, § 6621.
§6048. Possession, action for.
An action for the possession of real property leased or granted, with a right of reentry, may be maintained at any time after the right to reenter has accrued, without the notice prescribed in the preceding section.
R.L.1910, § 6622.
§60-49. Easements attached to land.
The following land burdens or servitudes upon land, may be attached to other land as incidents or appurtenances, and are then called easements:
1. The right of pasture;
2. The right of fishing;
3. The right of taking game;
4. The right-of-way;
5. The right of taking water, wood, minerals, and other things;
6. The right of transacting business upon land;
7. The right of conducting lawful sports upon land;
8. The right of receiving air, light, or heat from or over, or discharging the same upon or over land;
9. The right of receiving water from or discharging the same upon land;
10. The right of flooding land;
11. The right of having water flow without diminution or disturbance of any kind;
12. The right of using a wall as a party wall;
13. The right of receiving more than natural support from adjacent land or things affixed thereto;
14. The right of having the whole of a division fence maintained by a coterminous owner;
15. The right of having public conveyances stopped, or of stopping the same on land;
16. The right of a seat in church;
17. The right of burial; and
18. The right to impose limitations or affirmative obligations relating to conservation pursuant to the Uniform Conservation Easement Act.
R.L.1910, § 6623. Amended by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 9, eff. Nov. 1, 1999
§60-49.1. Short title.
SHORT TITLE
Sections 1 through 8 of this act shall be known and may be cited as the "Uniform Conservation Easement Act".
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.2. Definitions.
DEFINITIONS
As used in this act:
1. "Conservation easement" means a nonpossessory interest of a holder in real property imposing limitations or affirmative obligations the purposes of which include, but are not limited to, retaining or protecting natural, scenic, or open-space values of real property, assuring its availability for agricultural, forest, recreational, or open-space use, protecting natural resources, maintaining or enhancing air or water quality, or preserving the historical, architectural, archaeological, or cultural aspects of real property; and
2. "Holder" means:
a. a governmental body empowered to hold an interest in real property under the laws of this state or the United States, or
b. a charitable corporation, charitable association, or charitable trust, the purposes or powers of which include retaining or protecting the natural, scenic, or open-space values of real property, assuring the availability of real property for agricultural, forest, recreational, or open-space use, protecting natural resources, maintaining or enhancing air or water quality, or preserving the historical, architectural, archaeological, or cultural aspects of real property.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.3. Creation, conveyance, acceptance, and duration.
CREATION, CONVEYANCE, ACCEPTANCE, AND DURATION
A. Except as otherwise provided in this act, a conservation easement may be created, conveyed, recorded, assigned, released, modified, terminated, or otherwise altered or affected in the same manner as other easements, provided however, nothing herein shall authorize any entity or individual to obtain a conservation easement by condemnation.
B. No right or duty in favor of or against a holder arises under a conservation easement before its acceptance by the holder and a recordation of the acceptance.
C. Except as provided in subsection B of Section 4 of this act, the term of a conservation easement shall be the term stated in the instrument creating it.
D. An interest in real property in existence at the time a conservation easement is created is not impaired by it unless the owner of the interest is a party to the conservation easement or consents to it.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.4. Judicial Actions.
JUDICIAL ACTIONS
A. An action affecting a conservation easement may be brought by:
1. An owner of an interest in the real property burdened by the easement;
2. A holder of the easement; or
3. A person authorized by other law.
B. The Uniform Conservation Easement Act does not affect the power of a court to modify or terminate a conservation easement in accordance with the principles of law and equity.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.5. Validity.
VALIDITY
A conservation easement is valid even though:
1. It is not appurtenant to an interest in real property;
2. It can be or has been assigned to another holder;
3. It is not of a character that has been recognized traditionally at common law;
4. It imposes a negative burden;
5. It imposes affirmative obligations upon the owner of an interest in the burdened property or upon the holder;
6. The benefit does not touch or concern real property; or
7. There is no privity of estate or of contract.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 5, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.6. Applicability.
APPLICABILITY
A. The Uniform Conservation Easement Act applies to any interest created after November 1, 1999, which complies with the Uniform Conservation Easement Act, whether designated as a conservation easement or as a covenant, equitable servitude, restriction, easement, or otherwise.
B. The Uniform Conservation Easement Act applies to any interest created before November 1, 1999, if it would have been enforceable had it been created after November 1, 1999, unless retroactive application contravenes the constitution or laws of this state or the United States.
C. The Uniform Conservation Easement Act does not invalidate any interest, whether designated as a conservation or preservation easement or as a covenant, equitable servitude, restriction, easement, or otherwise, that is enforceable under other laws of this state.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 6, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.7. Uniformity of application and construction.
UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION
This act shall be applied and construed to effectuate its general purpose to make uniform the law with respect to the subject of this act among states enacting it.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 7, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.8. Additional Construction.
ADDITIONAL CONSTRUCTION
Unless the grantor of a conservation easement elects otherwise at the time of and in the same manner as the grant of the easement:
1. Nothing in this act shall be construed to impair the rights of a party with respect to the acquisition of rights-of-way, easements, or other property rights, whether through voluntary conveyance or eminent domain, upon or under which facilities, plant, system, or other improvements including, but not limited to, a pipeline for transmission, gathering, or transportation of hydrocarbons are to be constructed; and
2. The holder of a conservation easement must subordinate, without construction restrictions or other obligations, the conservation easement upon the request of any party owning any of the above rights-of-way, easements, or other property rights whether acquired prior or subsequent to the conservation easement.
Added by Laws 1999, c. 384, § 8, eff. Nov. 1, 1999.
§60-49.11. Short title.
SHORT TITLE.
A. Sections 1 through 13 of this act shall be known and may be cited as the “Uniform Environmental Covenants Act”.
B. The provisions of the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act apply to real property in Oklahoma that otherwise qualifies under the provisions of the act.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.12. Definitions.
DEFINITIONS.
In the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act:
1. “Activity and use limitations” means restrictions or obligations created under this act with respect to real property;
2. “Agency” means the Department of Environmental Quality or any other state or federal agency that determines or approves the environmental response project pursuant to which the environmental covenant is created;
3. “Common interest community” means a condominium, cooperative, or other real property with respect to which a person, by virtue of the person’s ownership of a parcel of real property, is obligated to pay property taxes or insurance premiums, or for maintenance, or improvement of other real property described in a recorded covenant that creates the common interest community;
4. “Environmental covenant” means a servitude arising under an environmental response project that imposes activity and use limitations;
5. “Environmental response project” means a plan or work performed for environmental remediation of real property and conducted:
a. under a federal or state program governing environmental remediation of real property, including remedial actions provided for in the Oklahoma Environmental Quality Code,
b. incident to closure of a solid or hazardous waste management unit, if the closure is conducted with approval of an agency, or
c. under a state voluntary cleanup program authorized in the Oklahoma Brownfields Voluntary Redevelopment Act;
6. “Holder” means the grantee of an environmental covenant as specified in subsection A of Section 3 of this act;
7. “Person” means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public corporation, government, governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity;
8. “Record”, used as a noun, means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form; and
9. “State” means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.13. Nature of rights - Subordination of interests.
NATURE OF RIGHTS; SUBORDINATION OF INTERESTS.
A. Any person, including a person that owns an interest in the real property, the agency, or a municipality or other unit of local government, may be a holder. An environmental covenant may identify more than one holder. The interest of a holder is an interest in real property.
B. A right of an agency under the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act or under an environmental covenant, other than a right as a holder, is not an interest in real property.
C. An agency is bound by any obligation it assumes in an environmental covenant, but an agency does not assume obligations merely by signing an environmental covenant. Any other person that signs an environmental covenant is bound by the obligations the person assumes in the covenant, but signing the covenant does not change obligations, rights, or protections granted or imposed under law other than the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act except as provided in the covenant.
D. The following rules apply to interests in real property in existence at the time an environmental covenant is created or amended:
1. An interest that has priority under other law is not affected by an environmental covenant unless the person that owns the interest subordinates that interest to the covenant;
2. The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act does not require a person that owns a prior interest to subordinate that interest to an environmental covenant or to agree to be bound by the covenant;
3. A subordination agreement may be contained in an environmental covenant covering real property or in a separate record. If the environmental covenant covers commonly owned property in a common interest community, the record may be signed by any person authorized by the governing board of the owners’ association; and
4. An agreement by a person to subordinate a prior interest to an environmental covenant affects the priority of that person’s interest but does not by itself impose any affirmative obligation on the person with respect to the environmental covenant.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 3, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.14. Contents of environmental covenant.
CONTENTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL COVENANT.
A. An environmental covenant must:
1. State that the instrument is an environmental covenant executed pursuant to the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act;
2. Contain a legally sufficient description of the real property subject to the covenant;
3. Describe the activity and use limitations on the real property;
4. Identify every holder;
5. Be signed by the agency, every holder, and every owner of the fee simple of the real property subject to the covenant; and
6. Identify the name and location of any administrative record for the environmental response project reflected in the environmental covenant.
B. In addition to the information required by subsection A of this section, an environmental covenant may contain other information, restrictions, and requirements agreed to by the persons who signed it, including any:
1. Requirements for notice following transfer of a specified interest in, or concerning proposed changes in use of, applications for building permits for, or proposals for any site work affecting the contamination on, the property subject to the covenant;
2. Requirements for periodic reporting describing compliance with the covenant;
3. Rights of access to the property granted in connection with implementation or enforcement of the covenant;
4. Brief narrative description of the contamination and remedy, including the contaminants of concern, the pathways of exposure, limits on exposure, and the location and extent of the contamination;
5. Limitation on amendment or termination of the covenant in addition to those contained in Sections 9 and 10 of this act; and
6. Rights of the holder in addition to its right to enforce the covenant pursuant to Section 11 of this act.
C. In addition to other conditions for its approval of an environmental covenant, the agency may require those persons specified by the agency who have interests in the real property to sign the covenant.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 4, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.15. Validity - Effective on other instruments.
VALIDITY; EFFECT ON OTHER INSTRUMENTS.
A. An environmental covenant that complies with the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act runs with the land.
B. An environmental covenant that is otherwise effective is valid and enforceable even if:
1. It is not appurtenant to an interest in real property;
2. It can be or has been assigned to a person other than the original holder;
3. It is not of a character that has been recognized traditionally at common law;
4. It imposes a negative burden;
5. It imposes an affirmative obligation on a person having an interest in real property or on the holder;
6. The benefit or burden does not touch or concern real property;
7. There is no privity of estate or contract;
8. The holder dies, ceases to exist, resigns, or is replaced; or
9. The owner of an interest subject to the environmental covenant and the holder are the same person.
C. An instrument that creates restrictions or obligations with respect to real property that would qualify as activity and use limitations except for the fact that the instrument was recorded before January 1, 2007, is not invalid or unenforceable because of any of the limitations on enforcement of interests described in subsection B of this section or because it was identified as an easement, servitude, deed restriction, or other interest. The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act does not apply in any other respect to such an instrument.
D. The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act does not invalidate or render unenforceable any interest, whether designated as an environmental covenant or other interest, that is otherwise enforceable under the law of this state.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 5, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.16. Relationship to other land-use law.
RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAND-USE LAW.
The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act does not authorize a use of real property that is otherwise prohibited by zoning, by law other than the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act regulating use of real property, or by a recorded instrument that has priority over the environmental covenant. An environmental covenant may prohibit or restrict uses of real property which are authorized by zoning or by law other than the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 6, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.17. Notice.
NOTICE.
A. A copy of an environmental covenant shall be provided by the persons and in the manner required by the agency to:
1. Each person that signed the covenant;
2. Each person holding a recorded interest in the real property subject to the covenant;
3. Each person in possession of the real property subject to the covenant;
4. Each municipality or other unit of local government in which real property subject to the covenant is located; and
5. Any other person the agency requires.
B. The validity of a covenant is not affected by failure to provide a copy of the covenant as required under this section.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 7, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.18. Recording.
RECORDING.
A. An environmental covenant and any amendment or termination of the covenant must be recorded in every county in which any portion of the real property subject to the covenant is located. For purposes of indexing, a holder shall be treated as a grantee.
B. Except as otherwise provided in subsection C of Section 9 of this act, an environmental covenant is subject to the laws of this state governing recording and priority of interests in real property.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 8, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.19. Duration - Amendment by court action.
DURATION; AMENDMENT BY COURT ACTION.
A. An environmental covenant is perpetual unless it is:
1. By its terms limited to a specific duration or terminated by the occurrence of a specific event;
2. Terminated by consent pursuant to Section 10 of this act;
3. Terminated pursuant to subsection B of this section;
4. Terminated by foreclosure of an interest that has priority over the environmental covenant; or
5. Terminated or modified in an eminent domain proceeding, but only if:
a. the agency that signed the covenant is a party to the proceeding,
b. all persons identified in subsections A and B of Section 10 of this act are given notice of the pendency of the proceeding, and
c. the court determines, after hearing, that the termination or modification will not adversely affect human health or the environment.
B. If the agency that signed an environmental covenant has determined that the intended benefits of the covenant can no longer be realized, a court, under the doctrine of changed circumstances, in an action in which all persons identified in subsections A and B of Section 10 of this act have been given notice, may terminate the covenant or reduce its burden on the real property subject to the covenant. The agency’s determination or its failure to make a determination upon request is subject to review pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.
C. Except as otherwise provided in subsections A and B of this section, an environmental covenant may not be extinguished, limited, or impaired through issuance of a tax deed, foreclosure of a tax lien, or application of the doctrine of adverse possession, prescription, abandonment, waiver, lack of enforcement, or acquiescence, or a similar doctrine.
D. An environmental covenant may not be extinguished, limited, or impaired by application of the provisions of Sections 71 through 85 of Title 16 of the Oklahoma Statutes or the Uniform Unclaimed Property Act.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 9, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.20. Amendment or termination by consent.
AMENDMENT OR TERMINATION BY CONSENT.
A. An environmental covenant may be amended or terminated by consent only if the amendment or termination is signed by:
1. The agency;
2. The current owner of the fee simple of the real property subject to the covenant;
3. Each person that originally signed the covenant, unless the person waived in a signed record the right to consent or a court finds that the person no longer exists or cannot be located or identified with the exercise of reasonable diligence; and
4. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph 2 of subsection D of this section, the holder.
B. If an interest in real property is subject to an environmental covenant, the interest is not affected by an amendment of the covenant unless the current owner of the interest consents to the amendment or has waived in a signed record the right to consent to amendments.
C. Except for an assignment undertaken pursuant to a governmental reorganization, assignment of an environmental covenant to a new holder is an amendment.
D. Except as otherwise provided in an environmental covenant:
1. A holder may not assign its interest without consent of the other parties; and
2. A holder may be removed and replaced by agreement of the other parties specified in subsection A of this section.
E. A court of competent jurisdiction may fill a vacancy in the position of holder.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 10, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.21. Enforcement of environmental covenant.
ENFORCEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL COVENANT.
A. A civil action for injunctive or other equitable relief for violation of an environmental covenant may be maintained by:
1. A party to the covenant;
2. The agency or, if it is not the agency, the Department of Environmental Quality;
3. Any person to whom the covenant expressly grants power to enforce;
4. A person whose interest in the real property or whose collateral or liability may be affected by the alleged violation of the covenant; or
5. A municipality or other unit of local government in which the real property subject to the covenant is located.
B. The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act does not limit the regulatory authority of the Department of Environmental Quality or other agency under law other than the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act with respect to an environmental response project including the authority of the Department of Environmental Quality provided in Sections 2-7-123 and 2-15-107 of Title 27A of the Oklahoma Statutes.
C. A person is not responsible for or subject to liability for environmental remediation solely because it has the right to enforce an environmental covenant.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 11, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.22. Uniformity of application and construction.
UNIFORMITY OF APPLICATION AND CONSTRUCTION.
In applying and construing the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act, consideration must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject matter among states that enact it.
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 12, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§60-49.23. Relation to Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act.
RELATION TO ELECTRONIC SIGNATURES IN GLOBAL AND NATIONAL COMMERCE ACT.
The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act modifies, limits, or supersedes the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (15 U.S.C., Section 7001 et seq.) but does not modify, limit, or supersede Section 101 of that act (15 U.S.C., Section 7001(a)) or authorize electronic delivery of any of the notices described in Section 103 of that act (15 U.S.C., Section 7003(b)).
Added by Laws 2006, c. 182, § 13, eff. Jan. 1, 2007.
§6050. Easements not attached to land.
The following land burdens or servitudes upon land may be granted and held, though not attached to land:
1. The right to pasture, and of fishing and taking game.
2. The right of seat in church.
3. The right of burial.
4. The right of taking rents and tolls.
5. The rightofway.
6. The right of taking water, wood, minerals, or other things.
R.L.1910, § 6624.
§6051. Dominant and servient tenements.
The land to which an easement is attached is called the dominant tenement; the land upon which a burden or servitude is laid is called the servient tenement. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6625.
R.L.1910, § 6625.
§6052. Servitude, who may create.
A servitude can be created only by one who has a vested estate in the servient tenement. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6626.
R.L.1910, § 6626.
§60-53. Servitude, who cannot hold.
A servitude thereon cannot be held by the owner of the servient tenement.
R.L. 1910, § 6627.
§6054. Extent of servitude.
The extent of a servitude is determined by the terms of the grant, or the nature of the enjoyment by which it was acquired. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6628.
R.L.1910, § 6628.
§6055. Partition of servitude.
In case of partition of the dominant tenement, the burden must be apportioned according to the division of the dominant tenement, but not in such a way as to increase the burden upon the servient tenement. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6629.
R.L.1910, § 6629.
§6056. Rights of owner of future estate.
The owner of a future estate in a dominant tenement, may use easements attached thereto, for the purpose of viewing waste, demanding rent, or removing an obstruction to the enjoyment of such easements, although such tenement if occupied by a tenant. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6630.
R.L.1910, § 6630.
§6057. Action to enforce easement.
The owner of any estate in a dominant tenement, or the occupant of such tenement, may maintain an action for the enforcement of an easement attached thereto. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6631.
R.L.1910, § 6631.
§6058. Action for possession of servient tenement.
The owner in fee of a servient tenement may maintain an action for the possession of the land, against any one unlawfully possessed thereof, though a servitude exists thereon in favor of the public. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6632.
R.L.1910, § 6632.
§6059. Servitude extinguished, how.
A servitude is extinguished:
1. By the vesting of the right to the servitude and the right to the servient tenement in the same person.
2. By the destruction of the servient tenement.
3. By the performance of any act upon either tenement, by the owner of the servitude, or with his assent which is incompatible with its nature or exercise; or,
4. When the servitude was acquired by enjoyment, by disuse thereof by the owner of the servitude for the period prescribed for acquiring title by enjoyment. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6633.
R.L.1910, § 6633.
§6059.1. Abstracting easement with mortgage or bond indenture Restrictions.
If a mortgage or bond indenture describes or makes reference to a recorded easement, the abstractor shall identify the mortgage or bond indenture in the abstract of title, state that the land described in the abstract of title is subject to the mortgage or bond indenture, and give the date of the mortgage or bond indenture, the book and page of its recording and the book and page of the recording of the easement described in said mortgage. The abstractor shall not otherwise summarize, abstract or copy the mortgage or bond indenture in full unless authorized in writing by the owner, purchaser or lessee of the land.
Added by Laws 1982, c. 109, § 1, emerg. eff. April 6, 1982.
§6059.2. Abstracting or copying mortgage or bond indenture without authorization Damages.
If any abstractor fails to obtain written authorization by the owner, purchaser or lessee of the land and subsequently summarizes, abstracts or copies the mortgage or bond indenture in full, he shall be liable for damages.
Added by Laws 1982, c. 109, § 2, emerg. eff. April 6, 1982.
§6059.3. Application of act.
The provisions of this act shall be prospective in nature and shall not apply to any documents recorded prior to the effective date of this act.
Added by Laws 1982, c. 109, § 3, emerg. eff. April 6, 1982.
§6060. Ownership of water Use of running water.
A. The owner of the land owns water standing thereon, or flowing over or under its surface but not forming a definite stream. The use of groundwater shall be governed by the Oklahoma Groundwater Law. Water running in a definite stream, formed by nature over or under the surface, may be used by the owner of the land riparian to the stream for domestic uses as defined in Section 105.1 of Title 82 of the Oklahoma Statutes, but he may not prevent the natural flow of the stream, or of the natural spring from which it commences its definite course, nor pursue nor pollute the same, as such water then becomes public water and is subject to appropriation for the benefit and welfare of the people of the state, as provided by law; Provided however, that nothing contained herein shall prevent the owner of land from damming up or otherwise using the bed of a stream on his land for the collection or storage of waters in an amount not to exceed that which he owns, by virtue of the first sentence of this section so long as he provides for the continued natural flow of the stream in an amount equal to that which entered his land less the uses allowed for domestic uses and for valid appropriations made pursuant to Title 82 of the Oklahoma Statutes; provided further, that nothing contained herein shall be construed to limit the powers of the Oklahoma Water Resources Board to grant permission to build or alter structures on a stream pursuant to Title 82 of the Oklahoma Statutes to provide for the storage of additional water the use of which the landowner has or acquires by virtue of this act.
B. All rights to the use of water in a definite stream in this state are governed by this section and other laws in Title 82 of the Oklahoma Statutes, which laws are exclusive and supersede the common law.
Amended by Laws 1988, c. 203, § 1, emerg. eff. June 10, 1988.
§6061. Life lease rent.
Rent due upon a lease for life may be recovered in the same manner as upon a lease for years. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6635.
R.L.1910, § 6635.
§6062. Life lease rent, recovery after death.
Rent dependent on the life of a person may be recovered after as well as before his death. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6636.
R.L.1910, § 6636.
§6063. Action for injury to inheritance.
A person having an estate in fee, in remainder, or reversion, may maintain an action for any injury done to the inheritance, notwithstanding an intervening estate for life or years, and although, after its commission, his estate is transferred, and he has no interest in the property at the commencement of the action. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6637.
R.L.1910, § 6637.
§6064. Fee title covers what.
The owner of land in fee has the right to the surface and to everything permanently situated beneath or above it. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6638.
R.L.1910, § 6638.
§6066. Lateral and subjacent support, right to.
Each coterminous owner is entitled to the lateral and subjacent support which his land receives from the adjoining land, subject to the right of the owner of the adjoining land to make proper and usual excavations on the same for purposes of construction, on using ordinary care and skill, and taking reasonable precautions to sustain the land of the other, and giving previous reasonable notice to the other of his intention to make such excavations. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6641.
R.L.1910, § 6641.
§6067. Trees on land, ownership of.
Trees whose trunks stand wholly upon the land of one owner, belong exclusively to him, although their roots grow into the land of another. R.L. 1910 Sec. 6642.