MBE Rules · Real Property
Privity Requirements
Covenants — privity details
The rule
Traditional burden-side running requires horizontal privity (covenant created in a conveyance) and vertical privity of the entire estate; benefits run with lesser vertical privity, and equitable servitudes dispense with privity entirely.
In plain English
Privity requirements dictate how covenants can bind successors in interest. For a burden to run with the land, there must be horizontal privity (the original parties must have a shared interest in the property) and vertical privity (the successor must hold the same estate as the original party). However, benefits can run with lesser vertical privity, and equitable servitudes do not require any privity at all.
Worked example
A developer sells a parcel of land to Buyer A with a covenant that restricts future development. Buyer A later sells the land to Buyer B, who wants to build a shopping center. Since Buyer A and Buyer B have vertical privity, the covenant runs with the land, and Buyer B is bound by the restriction.
Memory hook
Privity: the key to unlocking covenants' power over successors!
The trap
Exams often confuse students by mixing up horizontal and vertical privity, leading them to incorrectly assess whether a burden or benefit runs with the land. Pay close attention to the type of privity required for each scenario.
How examiners test it
Questions typically present a fact pattern involving multiple parties and property transfers, requiring candidates to analyze the presence or absence of privity to determine if a covenant is enforceable against successors.
Drill this rule until it can't fail you.
Vrenberg generates unlimited questions on this exact rule, tracks your mastery of it, and brings it back until it sticks.