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Sunny, You may open up a whole can of "legal worms" here lol. While I DO NOT practice Riparian Law and am unfamiliar with the laws of your state, I can still tell ya this is one of those areas of the law where NOT having any written agreement/lease/contract can be very dangerous n heres why..... . There are legal doctrines such as Adverse Possession and Laches and Easements by Prescription etc etc whereby if you were to set idly by and permit certain types of land use or easements on your property over a certain period of time, the neighbor/user can over time acquire legally enforceable continued rights in your land which you may never have envisioned. Say you openly allowed (with no written agreement) a neighbor to drive over your land for access to his hayfield for the statutory period of time (10 to 20 yrs typical) but then ordered him to stop, the law could bar you from stopping him and grant him the legal right to do so. ALSO say one neighbor did this n sold his land to another, the new owners rights TACK on to the old neighbor and then he might start doing the same thing (or at least get statutory time credit for the period the old neighbor used your land) even if hes a jerk you hate. If the rights or uses of your land or water "run with the land" they are NOT exclusive to any one particular neighbor mind you. Again, my best free legal advice (not familair with your states laws or riparian law) IS TO CONSULT A LOCAL ATTORNEY WHO PRACTICES RIPARIAN LAW. Its the situation where a few hundred bucks spent now could save you thousandsssss sssss down the road. Theres nothing wrong with wanting to be a good neighbor or sell or lease or give away your water rights, its just that if the neighbor sells his land you gotta watch out for the new jerk neighbor and take a few cautionary legal steps NOW to protect your rights for your family and your property value way down the road Best wishes n God Bless John T Attorney at Law in Indiana
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