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Adverse Possession (Justifications of Adverse Possession (If a person has…
Adverse Possession
Justifications of Adverse Possession
If a person has a long-term psychological connection with the land, it's unfair to take it away from them
Can make it easier for possession, as hundreds of years worth of paperwork don't have to be found and searched through
Rights to land can be identified and established easily as there is no paper trail
Seen as the land-owner's fault for resting on their rights and not keeping possession of the land
Criticisms of Adverse Possession
Legalised Robbery of land
Actual owner doesn't even have to know what is going on to their property
Unfair to public bodies who have land adversely possessed when the only reason the land isn't being used is a lack of funding
ECtHR said adverse possession is not compatible with article 1 ECHR
General Requirements
Occupier must be in possession
Must be in actual occupation
Must have an intention to possess
Possession must be adverse and not compatible with the owner's rights
Must the use of land be incompatible with the intentions of the owner?
Leigh v Jack (1879) said if the squatter's possession was consistent with the paper owner's intentions, then there was an implied license
Court later rejected this idea in Buckinghamshire v Moran
Protections for Squatters on the land
If the owner of the land objects to possession within the time limit, then the squatter's case will normally be over
3 Exceptions to this rule set out in Schedule 6 Para 5 LRA 2002
It would be unconscionable for the registered owner to dispossess the applicant
The applicant squatter is entitled for some other reason to be the registered proprietor
Where the dispute is a border dispute, where the boundary has never been fixed and the applicant thought the land belonged to them for over 10 years
Criticisms
Tries to push a moral agenda whereby the squatter is the wrongdoer in all cases even if it was just a genuine mistake
Some questions as to whether the concept of adverse possession breaches ECHR,
Pye v UK [2007] held originally wasn't compatible, but grand chamber said it didn't breach individual rights
Adverse Possession of Unregistered Land
Limitation Act 1980
Once a squatter has been adversely possessing land for 12 years unchallenged, no action can be brought against the squatter, and true title will be transferred to the squatter
Squatter's title becomes superior to any other claim to title
New owner must then register as the first owner of the land to the land register
Adverse Possession of Registered Land
Land Registration Act 2002
Squatter may apply to become the owner of the land after being in possession for 10 years
If a squatter applies, the registry must inform any party that has a paper claim to the land that an application has been registered
Paper owner has 65 days to respond to the registry contesting the application, otherwise title is transferred