Legal Definitions - horizontal privity

Horizontal privity refers to a specific type of relationship that must exist between the original parties who create a legal agreement or obligation concerning land, particularly when that obligation is intended to bind future owners of the land. This relationship is typically established when these original parties transfer an interest in the land to each other at the same time the agreement is made. It ensures there is a direct connection between the parties who initially established the land-related promise and the land itself through a shared transaction.

Here are some examples to illustrate horizontal privity:

• Example 1: Developer Selling Lots

  A property developer sells a parcel of land to a homebuyer. In the same deed that transfers ownership of the lot, the developer includes a covenant requiring the homeowner to contribute financially to the maintenance of a shared private road that serves the new property and other properties in the development.

  How it illustrates horizontal privity: Horizontal privity exists here because the developer (the original party imposing the obligation) and the homebuyer (the original party accepting the obligation) created the maintenance requirement *at the very moment* they transferred an interest in the land (the sale of the lot) from one to the other. This direct transactional link between the original parties is the essence of horizontal privity.

• Example 2: Neighbor Selling a Portion of Property

  Ms. Chen owns a large plot of land. She decides to sell the back half of her property to Mr. Davies. As part of the sale agreement, documented in the deed, Mr. Davies promises not to build any structure taller than one story on his newly acquired land, to preserve Ms. Chen's view from her remaining property.

  How it illustrates horizontal privity: Horizontal privity is present because the promise (the building height restriction) was made *at the same time* Ms. Chen transferred a portion of her land to Mr. Davies. The legal relationship between the original parties was created through this simultaneous transfer of a property interest and the establishment of the covenant.

• Example 3: Granting an Easement with a Related Obligation

  A farmer, Mr. Henderson, grants an easement to his neighbor, Ms. Patel, allowing her to run a water pipeline across a corner of his field to access a public water main. In the same legal document granting the easement, they include a clause stating that Ms. Patel will be solely responsible for any repairs to the pipeline within Mr. Henderson's property.

  How it illustrates horizontal privity: Here, horizontal privity is established because the obligation for pipeline repairs was created *concurrently* with the transfer of a property interest (the easement) from Mr. Henderson to Ms. Patel. The direct transactional link between the original parties at the time of the land interest transfer fulfills the requirement for horizontal privity.