An easement appurtenant—also known as an appurtenant easement, an appendant easement, or a pure easement—is an easement created to benefit another tract of land, with the use of the easement being incident to the ownership of that other tract of land.

An easement appurtenant benefits one tract of land (the dominant estate or tenement) to the detriment or burden of the other tract of land (the servient estate or tenement).

Easements appurtenant are attached to the land (are said to “run with the land”) and are automatically transferred when either the dominant estate or the servient estate is sold or transferred to a new owner.

In Missouri, an easement appurtenant is recognized as a non-possessory right to use another person's land for a specific benefit to the holder's adjacent land. This type of easement is tied to the land itself (dominant estate) rather than to the individual who holds the easement. When the dominant estate is sold or transferred, the easement appurtenant is automatically transferred to the new owner, as it is considered to 'run with the land.' The servient estate, which is the land over which the easement runs, is burdened by the easement, and this burden also passes with the land upon transfer. Missouri law requires that easements appurtenant be created with clear intent, often formalized through a written document, and they must be recorded to provide notice of their existence to subsequent purchasers. The specific rights and obligations associated with an easement appurtenant in Missouri may be outlined in the deed or other legal instruments creating the easement, and disputes are typically resolved in accordance with the terms of the easement and state property law.