A private easement is an easement that provides the right to use and enjoy a tract of property (the servient estate) by one specific person or a few specific people. Private easements are often sold to an adjoining property owner to allow the adjoining property owner to use the easement seller’s property in a limited way.

For example, a private sewer easement may be sold to a person building a house to allow the sewer line to slant properly to the street—which may require it to run underneath the easement seller’s property (the servient estate).

In Connecticut, a private easement is a non-possessory right to use and enjoy someone else's land for a specific purpose. The land that benefits from the easement is known as the dominant estate, while the land over which the easement runs is the servient estate. Private easements can be created by a written agreement between the property owners, and they must be recorded in the land records of the town where the property is located to be enforceable against third parties. The terms of the easement, including its duration, use, and maintenance responsibilities, are typically outlined in the easement agreement. Easements can be perpetual or for a fixed term and may be transferred with the dominant estate. In the case of a private sewer easement, the easement would allow the dominant estate to install and maintain a sewer line across the servient estate. Connecticut law requires that easements be created with clear and unambiguous language and that they respect the rights and reasonable expectations of both the servient and dominant estate owners.