Pub. 12 2017 Issue 1

www.ucls.org 32 Issue 1 2017 / UCLS Foresights The ART and ACCURACY of Writing Legal Descriptions F ellowSurveyors and surveyor-want-a-bees, pleaseacceptmy sincere apologies for the no-show at our UCLS conference. I was really looking forward toparticipating in theethics panel discussionandalsosharingmy thoughtson legal descriptions. Unfortunately, unforeseen health issues and a commanding – I mean caring spouse changed my plans. However, I do wish to share my “Art andAccuracyofWriting Legal Descriptions” presentationbypublishing it in the Foresight. Are surveyors creatures of habit? No – I am not talking about coke-drinking, rough-talking, hard-working, protector of boundaries type of surveyor habits. I am specifically inter- ested in knowing how you prepare legal descriptions. Obviously, some of us are older and may be set in our ways on how we prepare descriptions. We might have developed our own particular way – or style – of writing de- scriptions. Often our ways – or styles – were influenced by the ways – or styles – taught to us by our mentors. Many of the documents we use are clones of those that we were trained upon. We rarely question our ways – or styles – and continue doing whatever we are doing in the way we have always done it. We do it because they did it and they did it because that was the way it was always done. Go back a few generations and you may see reasons as to why old habits were perpetuated. After all, it is easier to use the wheel than to reinvent it – Right?. Part of this article is to prompt you to think about your “wheel.” I know, and hear it loud and clear “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” However, a better question might be “is the wheel really broke” or perhaps “is the wheel just a bit rusty?” Disclaimer 1: Nearly every bad and/or good example ref - erenced in this presentation is mine. I became a surveyor and did surveyor things by following the examples of my peers. There is no intent to make fun of any person, live or dead. Disclaimer 2: I am not an attorney and therefore the in - formation and/or opinions I share are my own and should not be construed as offering legal advice. Disclaimer 3: I am human and therefore not perfect. You may find grammatical errors and inconsistencies throughout this presentation. WHAT IS A LEGAL DESCRIPTION? • A legal description should be clear and concise • A legal description identifies a unique piece of land with only one location… • A description is called legal because it must stand up under law • A legal description may be part of a legal document o Is the description consistent with the legal document? o Are we practicing law? In the Preface of “Boundaries and Landmarks,” A.C. Mul - ford writes in 1912, “It is far more important to have faulty measurements on the place where the line truly exists than an accurate measurement where the line does not exist at all.” Our goal – our purpose – yea even our professional re - sponsibility is to safeguard the health, safety, and welfare of the public! The intent of this article is to focus specifically on those written descriptions that we prepare and interpret. How many times have you heard a co-worker or peer say, when interpreting a legal description, “obviously they intend- ed to follow the fence,” or “clearly this is an aliquot parcel of land?” The truth is, oftentimes the intent of the instrument is not obvious or clear. A distinction should be made between the written intent expressed in the instrument and the intent of the parties, which may or may not have been included in the instrument. Curt Brown stated in his 1954 “Boundary Control for Survey- ors” book “where a surveyor is trying to determine the intent of an instrument; the intent must be gathered from the writ- ten language of the instrument itself. What are the parts of a Legal Description? • Preamble or Caption • Body • Qualifications • Basis of Bearing • Sign, Seal and Date - Utah Code 58-22-602 (3) o Any final plan, map, sketch, survey, drawing, docu- ment, plat, and report shall bear the seal of the professional land surveyor licensed under this chapter when submitted to a client or when filed with public authorities. BY STEVEV. KEISEL, PLS