servitude, In property law, a right by which property owned by one person is subject to a specified use or enjoyment by another. Servitudes allow people to create stable long-term arrangements for a wide variety of purposes, including shared land uses; maintaining the character of a residential neighbourhood, commercial development, or historic property; and financing infrastructure and common facilities. Modern European civil law is derived from Roman law, which divides real servitudes into rural (those owed by one estate to another) and urban (those established for convenience). Rural servitudes include various rights of way; urban servitudes include building rights in neighbouring properties, such as drainage and encroachment rights, and rights to light, support, and view. See also easement.
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