Iowa Boundaries and Easements
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Before undertaking any on-demand effort, you should review the rules of your licensing/certifying entity.
It’s your responsibility to determine whether this on-demand course meets your continuing education requirements.
You must take and pass a quiz to receive credit. You can take the quiz as many times as needed and there is no time limit on the quiz.
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**Any on-demand programs that qualify for AIA or LACES credit will require an additional 2 business weeks for processing.
**AIA credit is not available in USB format.
Streamable MP4/PDF
You will receive an automated email letting you know when your On-Demand package is available approximately 3 business days after the date of the live event or the date of your order, whichever is later.
**Any streamable on-demand programs that qualify for AIA or LACES credit will require an additional 2 business weeks for processing.
The automated email letting you know when your On-Demand package is available will contain links to the video recording, materials, and program quiz.
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Click the link which appears at the end of the video to be taken to the course quiz.
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USB MP4/PDF
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**AIA credit is not available in USB format.
The link to the quiz will be available in a PDF in your USB drive marked QUIZ.
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Please contact HalfMoon Education if you have any questions during the process of taking this course. (715) 835-5900 or qchapman@halfmoonseminars.org
Agenda
Webinar instructions will be emailed 24-48 business hours before the date of the webinar.
Please log into the webinar 15 – 30 minutes before start time.
Friday, May 16, 2025
8:30 am – 4:30 pm CDT
Agenda:
Locating Land Boundaries on Paper (And on the Ground)
Presented by J. Cole Helfrich
- Interpreting land descriptions
- Metes and bounds
- Lot and block
- Dos and don’ts for writing descriptions
- Applying principles of boundary location
- Collecting and evaluating all types of boundary evidence: documents, physical evidence, people, surveys
- Locating the described land on a map
- Locating the described land on the ground
- Understanding and using geographic information systems (GIS)
- Solving land description and boundary location problems
Conservation Easements
Presented by Erin Van Waus
- How conservation easements work
- Land management flexibility
- Advantages
Understanding Riparian Rights and Access to Surface Water
Presented by Michael Anderson, P.E.
- History and development of riparian rights
- Determining land boundaries near the water line
- Determining access rights to surface waters
- Limitations on rights to surface waters
- Complying with water quality laws and regulations
Land Rights and Restrictions With Respect to Utility-Scale Wind and Solar Farms
Presented by Brent Hinders
Resolving Boundary Disputes
Presented by Harley Erbe
- Adverse possession
- Boundary by acquiescence claims
- Tips for ligation and trial
Defining Trespass and Adverse Possession
Presented by Brent Hinders
- 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
Webinar Instructions
All attendees must log-on through their own email – attendees may not watch together if they wish to earn continuing education credit. HalfMoon Education Inc. must be able to prove attendance if either the attendee or HalfMoon Education Inc. is audited.
Certificates of completion can be downloaded in PDF form upon passing a short quiz. A link to the quiz will be sent to each qualifying attendee immediately after the webinar. The certificate can be downloaded from the Results page of the quiz upon scoring 80% or higher.
Webinars are presented via GoToWebinar, an easy-to-use application that can be run on most systems and tablets. Instructions and login information will be provided in an email sent close to the date of the webinar. It is highly recommended that you download, install and test the application before the webinar begins by clicking on the link in the email.
GoToWebinar App requirements:
Windows 10 or higher, macOS 11 or higher, Linux, Google Chrome OS
Web Browser:
Google Chrome (most recent 3 versions)
Microsoft Edge (most recent 3 versions)
Internet connection: 1 Mbps or better
Hardware: 2GB of RAM (minimum), 4GB or more of RAM (recommended)
For more information, visit the Support section at www.gotowebinar.com
Credits
Engineers
7.0 PDHs
Land Surveyors
7.0 PDHs
Attorneys
7.0 CLE Hours
Continuing Education Information
This webinar is open to the public and is designed to qualify for 6.0 PDHs for professional engineers and land surveyors in Iowa for whom this subject matter is professionally relevant.
The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing does not pre-approve continuing education courses for engineers or land surveyors.
The Iowa Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Legal Education has approved this course for 7.0 CLE hours for licensed attorneys.
Attendance will be monitored, and attendance certificates will be available after the webinar for those who attend the entire course and score a minimum 80% on the quiz that follows the course (multiple attempts allowed).
*On-Demand Credits*
The preceding credit information only applies to the live presentation. This course in an on-demand format may not qualify for the same credits; please consult your licensing board(s) to ensure that a structured, asynchronous learning format is appropriate. This course has been approved by the following organizations for on-demand format:
7.0 CLE – Iowa Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Legal Education*
*Expires 05/16/2026.
Speakers
Michael Anderson, P.E.
Environmental Engineer Senior, Water Quality Bureau/Water Supply Engineering Section in Des MoinesMr. Anderson has been an engineer in the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Water Supply Engineering Section since 1984, and a senior engineer since 1995. He is the lead engineer responsible for water allocation review, policy analysis of water rights, and planning aspects of Iowa water law. He is also IDNR’s aquifer storage and recovery technical expert, from both a technical and a regulatory perspective. He has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree, both in Civil Engineering, and both from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He has a Hydrogeology minor, and he is also an assistant professor of Practice in Iowa State University’s Geology Department, teaching Hydrogeology.
Harley Erbe
ERBE LAW FIRM in Des MoinesMr. Erbe is a graduate of the Drake University Law School. He has practiced law in Iowa since 1999 and is a sole practitioner in Des Moines. He exclusively handles civil trial and litigation matters, including boundary disputes. Mr. Erbe is a member of the Iowa Academy of Trial Lawyers, the American Board of Trial Advocates, and the Litigation Counsel of America.
J. Cole Helfrich
Principal Land Surveyor with Koru Group PLLCMr. Helfrich has been principal land surveyor with Craig R. Knoche & Associates, P.C. and its successor Koru Group PLLC in the Chicago area for the last 30 years. Mr. Helfrich first picked up a plumb bob in 1971 for Webster & Associates. From tape-and-transit to GPS, mortgage surveys to shopping centers, he has his seal on billions of dollars of commercial, residential and institutional developments and transactions in 23 counties in Illinois together with consulting and managing projects in 15 other states. Mr. Helfrich has enjoyed working with countless prominent developers, attorneys and other professionals in the field and the office. His specialties include real estate law, boundaries and boundary law, easements, rights-of-way and other encumbrances and servitudes, statutory and common-law plats, ALTA surveys, topography, building and site layout, construction- and project-management as well as land development consulting. He has presented classes and co-written manuals with the Illinois Institute For Continuing Legal Education along with classes at the University of Illinois and HalfMoon Education. Mr. Helfrich is a member of the National Society of Professional Surveyors and the Illinois Professional Land Surveyors Association.
Brent Hinders
Shareholder with Hopkins & Huebner, P.C., in Des MoinesAs an attorney for government bodies, Mr. Hinders has substantial experience in advising boards on legal matters, interpreting ordinances and statutes, writing policies, reviewing and recommending modifications to ordinances, negotiating collective bargaining agreements, and representing municipalities in court, and he has tried numerous jury and non-jury trials. Mr. Hinders has represented clients on cases involving a wide variety of municipal law issues, including: statute and ordinance issues, open records and open meetings issues, contract interpretation issues, zoning issues, takings issues, and writs of certiorari and mandamus. He has represented municipal boards of adjustment, zoning commissions, and drainage districts. Mr. Hinders has been named a “Best Lawyer” in the State of Iowa since 2020 in the areas of employment benefits law, employer and employee labor and employment law, and as and as a litigator in the areas of labor, employment, and municipal law. He is a graduate of Simpson College, Drake University College of Business and Public Administration, and Drake University Law School.
Erin Van Waus
Conservation Easement Director for Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF)As the conservation easement director for Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation (INHF), Ms. Van Waus acquires new conservation easements and oversees monitoring and enforcement of 240 conservation easements protecting 28,000 acres across the state. INHF is a statewide conservation organization with a mission to protect and restore Iowa’s land, water and wildlife. Celebrating 45 years as a non-profit, INHF has protected over 200,000 acres of Iowa’s prairies, woodlands, wetlands and family farms. Ms. Van Waus has completed 80 new conservation easements during her 15-year tenure at INHF. Her other duties have included invasive species management, prescribed fire and farm management. Prior to INHF, Ms. Van Waus worked at Iowa State University and Iowa Learning Farms focusing on soil conservation and residue management in agricultural systems. She received her bachelor’s degree in Biology: Ecology and Systematics and her professional science masters degree in Ecosystem Management, both from University of Northern Iowa.

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