Rhode Island Land and Water Law: Ownership and Access
DISCLAIMER
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.
Once the quiz is completed, you will be asked to download your certificate.
**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 10 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.
To track your purchase, you will need to create an account on the website using the email address used for your registration.
For AIA requirements only, the on-demand recording will have occasional question prompts that will not allow the video to progress unless they are answered, and you will not be able to skip forward while watching the video.
Please note, if you attempt to resume watching the video on a separate device, your progress will not be saved.
Click the link which appears at the end of the video to be taken to the course quiz.
You will have unlimited access to the on-demand video recording, and it will never expire.
USB MP4/PDF
HalfMoon will mail these materials via USPS.
USB orders ship approximately 10 business days after the program takes place or after the order is placed, whichever date is later. Please allow an additional 7-10 business days for shipping.
**Any USB on-demand programs that qualify for LACES credit will require an additional 2 business weeks for processing.
**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.
HalfMoon will contact you and issue a full refund if the product you ordered is not available. However, refunds will not be issued if completion certificates are requested.
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 10-15 minutes before start time.
Friday, March 6, 2026
8:30 am – 4:00 pm EST
Agenda:
Presented by Matthew A. Noviello
Locating Land Boundaries on Paper (and on the Ground)
- Interpreting land descriptions
- Metes and bounds
- Lot and block
- Dos and don’ts for writing descriptions
- Applying principles of boundary location
- Collecting and evaluting 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
Identifying, Classifying and Locating Private Easements
- What is and is not an easement
- Reviewing Rhode Island law on easements
- Creating easements: easements by necessity, easements by 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
- 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
Understanding Riparian Rights and Access to Surface Water
- 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
Understanding Utility Easements and Rights of Way
- Current law on utility rights of way
- Federal laws and regulations
- State laws and regulations
- Types of utilities affected
- Electric, water, natural gas, telecommunications, satellite communications
- Basis for and definition of the easement
- Encroachments and interferences
- Maintenance
- Environmental issues
- Condemnation law
- Current issues involving utility easements
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
6.5 Elective PDHs
Land Surveyors
Pending
Attorneys
7.5 CLE Credits
Continuing Education Information
This webinar is open to the public and is designed to qualify for up to 6.5 elective PDHs for professional engineers and 6.5 PDHs for land surveyors in Rhode Island.
HalfMoon Education is applying to the Board of Registration for Professional Land Surveyors for course accreditation. Visit this course listing at halfmoonseminars.org for updates on accreditation.
This course has been approved by the Rhode Island Supreme Court for 7.5 CLE credits.
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 be eligible for the same credits as the live presentation; please consult your licensing board(s) to ensure that a structured, asynchronous learning format is appropriate.
Speakers
Matthew A. Noviello
Principal in Noviello & Noviello, Esqs. and Principal in Matthew A. Noviello, P.E., L.S., in Carmel, NYMr. Noviello is an attorney-at-law, a professional engineer, and land surveyor who enjoys teaching. He has taught real property law, survey law and, more recently, alpine skiing. Mr. Noviello received his Master of Engineering degree, his Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering, with honors, and his AAS degree in Engineering, all from Rochester Institute of Technology. He received his juris doctor degree from Rutgers University School of Law-Newark. Mr. Noviello has maintained a professional engineering firm and a general practice law firm since 1984, and he has practiced land surveying since 1991, with ten years in industry and six years in government. He is a licensed professional engineer in the states of New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Mr. Noviello is a New York and Connecticut licensed land surveyor. He holds law licenses in New York State Courts, US Supreme Court, Federal Court for the Southern District of New York, and Federal Court for the State of New Jersey.
6.5 Knowledge Points
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