Agenda

Registration:                    8:00 – 8:30 am

Morning Session:             8:30 am – 12:00 pm

Lunch (On your own):      12:00 – 1:00 pm

Afternoon Session:           1:00 – 5:30 pm

Boundary Survey Basics
C. Sherby

   How are land boundaries created?
   Interpreting legal descriptions
      • Aliquot parts (PLSS), simultaneous, metes-and-bounds, sequential
   Conflict and ambiguities: Rules of construing descriptions
     (ORS and other guidelines)
   Unwritten rights, intention, interpretation
   “Why doesn’t your survey match the description”
      • Examples and explanations

Identifying, Classifying and Locating Easements
A. Resto-Spotts

   What is and is not an easement
   Reviewing state law on easements
   Creating easements: easements by necessity, easements by use, written easements
   Identifying critical distinctions between easements in gross, easements appurtenant and prescriptive easements
   Maintaining easements
   Knowing when and how to terminate easements
   Obstructing use of easements and determining remedies for obstruction

Defining Trespass and Adverse Possession
J. Zahniser

   Defining trespass
   Reviewing the history of adverse possession
   Maintaining a claim for adverse possession
      • Statute of limitations
      • Elements of a claim
   Defending against a claim for adverse possession
   Examining recent adverse possession cases

Understanding Riparian and Water Rights
P. Mohr

   History and development of riparian rights
   Determining land boundaries near the water line
   Determining access rights to surface waters
   Determining rights to groundwater
   Complying with regulations restricting access to and use of surface water and groundwater

Resolving Boundary Disputes
J. Howsley

   Types of boundary disputes
      • Adverse possession, easements, boundaries
   Obtaining and reviewing boundary evidence
   Methods for establishing disputed boundaries
   Participating in dispute resolution techniques
      • Litigation, arbitration, mediation, agreements, title insurance
   Examining boundary dispute case studies:
     Exploring techniquesfor resolving sample disputes

Credits

Attorneys
     7.5 Oregon CLE Hours
     7.5 Washington CLE Hours

Engineers & Land Surveyors
     7.5 PDHs

 

Continuing Education Credit Information

This seminar is open to the public. The Oregon State Bar and the Washington State Bar MCLE Board have each approved this course for 7.5 CLE hours for attorneys.

This activity offers 7.5 PDHs to Oregon professional engineers and land surveyors to whom the subject matter is professionally relevant. Educators and courses are not subject to preapproval in Oregon.

Attendance will be monitored and reported, as required. Attendance certificates will be available after the seminar for most individuals who complete the entire event. Attendance certificates not available at the seminar will be mailed to participants within fifteen business days.

Speakers

James D. Howsley

Jordan Ramis, Portland

Mr. Howsley, a passionate land use attorney, draws inspiration from his upbringing around his father, a respected planner and land use attorney. With a profound understanding of the evolving regulatory environment in land development, Mr. Howsley is recognized for his dedication to navigating complex rules and relationships. Representing clients throughout the Pacific Northwest, he specializes in finding creative, cost-effective solutions for challenges in real estate development. Mr. Howsley’s expertise spans large-scale master planned developments, urban growth area expansion, and collaboration with local governments on financing tools for infrastructure. Beyond his legal prowess, his commitment to turning community visions into reality is evident in his successful advocacy for growth.

Peter Mohr

Jordan Ramis

Peter Mohr is an attorney with Jordan Ramis. As an environmental and natural resources lawyer, he is committed to helping clients secure both certainty and fairness within the regulatory context. Mr. Mohr has dealt with many different jurisdictions and agencies throughout the western United States during his career, providing a high level of expertise in state and federal law to both public and private clients involving environmental and natural resources, energy, and real property issues. With a practice that has a strong emphasis in water law, Mr. Mohr has successfully pursued water rights applications for agricultural, commercial, hydro power, special district and governmental uses before both state courts and administrative agencies. He has successfully defended senior commercial scale water rights against claims of statutory forfeiture, resolved numerous water facilities right-of-way and water rights title disputes, and has completed countless water rights transactions, large and small.

Armand Resto-Spotts

Armand Resto-Spotts, Attorney

Mr. Resto-Spotts is an attorney focusing on land use, real estate, and environmental law.  He represents homeowners, developers, and other municipal and industrial clients in a variety of compliance and permitting issues affecting real property, including local and state land use controls such as critical areas regulations and zoning. Mr. Resto-Spotts also advises and assists clients in drafting and reviewing the wide array of transactional documents affecting the use of real property, such as deeds, easements, covenants, and other real estate contracts.  Additionally, from his prior work advising municipal clients in Washington, he also has extensive experience in public records and open government law.

Christopher Sherby

Christopher Sherby is a professional land surveyor and contract/project manager with 20 years of experience, holding licenses in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Nevada and Utah. He is an owner of S&F Land Services, a surveying and remote sensing firm with three offices throughout Oregon. Mr. Sherby’s experience includes performing field and office survey support on a range of projects from small boundary and topographic surveys to very large federal projects. Managing 15-35 person surveying teams for the past 10 years, he prides himself on encouraging the education and professional growth of staff at all levels. Mr. Sherby was previously an instructor in Oregon Institute of Technology’s Geomatics program and has been instructing classes at Clark College’s Surveying and Geomatics program for the past 10 years. He holds a B.S. degree in Geomatics from the Oregon Institute of Technology and is a 2012 graduate of Leadership Clark County.

Jacob Zahniser

Jacob Zahniser is an Attorney with Miller, Nash, Graham & Dunn, LLP. A construction lawyer, construction litigator, and trial attorney, Mr. Zahniser focuses his practice on construction and real estate litigation, as well as handling insurance coverage disputes arising from construction defects. As a construction lawyer, he has represented a wide variety of construction industry clients ranging from contractors, suppliers, and insurance policy holders and assignees, to commercial property owners, landlords, and homeowners associations. Mr. Zahniser is experienced in all forms of construction litigation, including payment disputes and lien claims, insurance coverage, leases, purchase and sale agreements, development rights, adverse possession, property lines and easements, and development disputes. He is also a member of the Executive Committee for the Oregon State Bar Construction Section.