In Defense of Conservation Easements: A Response to The End of Perpetuity

Many conservation easements are conveyed to government entities or land trusts in whole or in part as charitable gifts. The primary issue addressed in this article is whether such easements constitute restricted or unrestricted charitable gifts for state law purposes. It offers a rebuttal to “In Hicks v. Dowd: The End of Perpetuity”, in which C. Timothy Lindstrom asserts that perpetual conservation easements donated to government entities or land trusts are unrestricted charitable gifts, and thus, the holders of such easements are not obligated under state law to administer the easements in accordance with their stated terms or purposes.