Ninth Court of Appeals Upholds Easement, Awards $100 to Lake Conroe Neighbours

Rudy R. Amador and Carolyn S. Amador, owners of Lot 58 in Pebble Glen, faced a lawsuit from John P. Suitts and Kelly A. Marchman‑Suitts of adjacent Lot 59 over a five‑foot strip along Lake Conroe. The Amadors’ house, built in 2003 by Charles and Barbara Rosok, sits less than five inches from the common boundary and has had a Generac generator installed in 2016. In 2021 a survey showed Amador‑owned meters and a generator panel extending onto the Suitts’ land, prompting the Suitts to demand removal and an injunction.

During trial, John Suitts recounted how Rudy Amador entered his property without permission, kicked a security light and a survey stake, and that the Amador admitted to moving a light after an insect crawled up his leg. Amador received a criminal trespass warning in 2022, after which he told the court he stopped entering the Suitts’ land and instructed his contractors to do the same. Nevertheless, evidence showed the neighbours had cooperated for years, allowing drainage connections and occasional maintenance access.

The legal question hinged on whether an easement by estoppel existed, a right that can arise from a property owner’s conduct that leads another to rely on permission. The jury found that the Amadors had relied on the Suitts’ longstanding permission for 13 years, thereby creating an easement for maintenance and repair. The court agreed, upholding the jury’s decision and rejecting the Amadors’ claims for broader necessity‑based easements.

The Ninth Court of Appeals also upheld the trial court’s $100 nominal damages award to the Suitts and issued a permanent injunction restricting the Amadors to the recognized easement. The ruling is final; the Amadors may now carry out repairs within the confined strip, while the Suitts retain full control of the remaining land.