In short: In Marlette v. Carullo, Odessa neighbors fought for years over a well and dirt driveway that served one home but sat on the other lot under a 1997 recorded easement. After two published appellate opinions in 2022, the Second DCA affirmed the final judgment without opinion in 2025 (2D2023-0881). The trial court had already ruled the driveway easement nonexclusive.
The Facts
The two lots in Odessa, Hillsborough County, were once one property. The owners installed a dirt driveway and a well serving the home that is now Jessica Marlette’s.
After the land was split, the driveway and well turned out to be on the neighboring lot. A 1997 recorded agreement granted a perpetual easement, running with the land, for continued use and maintenance of the well and driveway as constructed.
Marlette bought her lot in 2010 after a foreclosure. Roxanne Carullo acquired the neighboring lot in 2018 and began building in 2020.
Marlette alleged the driveway was blocked, the well was threatened and a septic system was planned near it. She sued in 2020 for declaratory relief, injunction, breach of the agreement, nuisance and later trespass.
The trial court ruled the driveway easement nonexclusive and granted judgment on the pleadings against her exclusive and prescriptive easement claims. These facts come from the Second DCA’s 2022 opinions, Marlette v. Carullo, 347 So. 3d 556, and 351 So. 3d 1193.
The Decision
In 2022 the Second DCA quashed an order splitting the legal and equitable claims into separate trials, because shared facts must go to the jury first (347 So. 3d 556), and reversed a temporary injunction that lacked required findings and a bond (351 So. 3d 1193).
After final judgment, the Second DCA affirmed with a one-word per curiam opinion (Case No. 2D2023-0881, June 13, 2025). A PCA gives no reasons and sets no precedent, so it does not confirm what the appeal turned on.
The Law
An express easement is construed from its recorded language. Easements are presumed nonexclusive unless the grant says otherwise, so the burdened owner may use the area in ways that do not unreasonably interfere.
Prescriptive easements require 20 years of continuous, open, adverse use. Temporary injunctions require specific findings and a bond under Rule 1.610.
Lessons
- If a well, septic system or driveway serves your home but sits on a neighbor’s land, get a recorded easement that spells out exclusivity, maintenance and relocation.
- “As constructed” language can freeze an easement’s location and scope.
- Easement fights can run for years and through multiple appeals; consider mediation early.
- Buyers after foreclosure inherit the easements of record, good and bad.
Source: Opinion, Marlette v. Carullo, 347 So. 3d 556 (Fla. 2d DCA 2022)
Watch the Oral Argument
This is the recording of the oral argument. The video description calls the case “Marlet v. Belt”; the caption is Marlette v. Carullo, and Belt was counsel. The channel has a second upload of this argument. What lawyers and judges say at argument is not the ruling; the decision is summarized above.
Who Owns the Well and Driveway? Easement Dispute | Marlette v. Carullo, 2D2023-0881
Go Deeper
- Does an “Exclusive” Easement Lock Out the Owner Who Granted It? (Myers v. Garber)
- No Written Easement, No Parking Access: Condo Loses Driveway Claim (Miami Beach Club v. RDR)
- A Chain-Link Fence Since the 1950s Settled a Key West Boundary (Kaczmarek v. Kruer)
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an easement exclusive in Florida?
Usually not. Easements are presumed nonexclusive unless the grant clearly says otherwise.
Can my neighbor block an easement driveway?
Not in a way that unreasonably interferes with the easement holder’s rights.
How long does a prescriptive easement take in Florida?
Twenty years of continuous, open and adverse use.
What should a well-and-driveway easement say?
Location, exclusivity, maintenance duties, relocation rights and who pays for repairs.
Talk to a Florida real estate litigation lawyer
Weidner Law, P.A. handles Florida real estate, landlord-tenant, condominium and property disputes from St. Petersburg. If you need a real estate litigation lawyer, call (727) 954-8752 or email weidner@mattweidnerlaw.com.
Read the law yourself, free: the full Florida Statutes and court rules are on floridarules.net.
This article is general information about Florida law, not legal advice about your situation. Reading it, watching the videos, or contacting the firm does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts, and past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. The hiring of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely upon advertisements.
