The Va. Supreme Court in a 3-2 vote ruled that Dominion Virginia ...
The Va. Supreme Court in a 3-2 vote ruled that Dominion Virginia Power doesn’t have exclusive rights to control telecom carriers’ access to rights of way along a former railroad line converted to a biking trail. The court (Case…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
042426) upheld a lower court ruling that the power company was required legally to secure consent from the Northern Va. Regional Park Authority in 2000 before granting right of way access to AT&T to lay fiber cable. The 100-foot-wide strip of land, stretching 45 miles from Arlington County to Purcellville, follows the W&OD Railroad roadbed converted into a regional park under the Rails To Trails program. The Supreme Court agreed with a lower court finding that the 1977 easement agreement language clearly was intended to be non-exclusive. The court majority said the language clearly let the park authority sign easements with other parties after consulting with Virginia Power, which demonstrates that the agreement wasn’t exclusive. The 2 dissenters, however, said the language actually bars anyone else from occupying the right of way without Virginia Power’s consent, which would make the agreement exclusive.