Can deeded hunting rights be revoked in WV

Question

I own a farm in WV. My grandfather sold the hunting rights to a group of men in 1957. All of those men are now deceased. Do I have to allow the sons and grandsons of those men to continue to hunt? The deed of hunting rights recorded in Hampshire county states it is for 99 years and runs with the land.

Answer 1

In general, rights and obligations under a contract are transferable

That means, that when I die, my estate and ultimately my heirs are bound by the contract. When you think about it, this is obvious - for example, no bank would loan money if the debtor could avoid repayment just by dying.

Exceptions are where the contract is for personal services or where the contract makes specific provisions about transfers. A personal services contract is one where only a specific individual can perform it, employment contracts being the most common.

You would need to look at the specific wording of the deed but if it is silent on transfers, then the heirs of the original hunters have all the same rights and obligations. That is, if they accepted the bequest - gifts can be refused but that would be up to them, not you.