New "Squatter's Rights" Clarification from Court

"Squatter's Rights" is the name commonly given to the legal term "Adverse Possession". It refers to the way in which land can be acquired by using it over time, rather than buying or inheriting the property. 

What does adverse possession mean?

Rights of adverse possession allow a party to acquire ownership of land originally belonging to another person, without the owner's permission. To obtain adverse possession, the person making the claim must have: 

1. been in actual possession of the land (i.e. been using it for their own purposes);
2. intended to possess the land, rather than simply using the land by mistake; and
3. have possessed the land without the permission of the landowner.

Applications for adverse possession need to be made to HM Land Registry. 

There are strict time limits governing when an application for adverse possession can be made, which have now been clarified by the case of Brown v Ridley, by the Supreme Court.

Brown v Ridley Adverse Possession Case

The Ridleys purchased a plot of land in 2004. At the time of purchase, a hedge and fence appeared to represent the boundary between their land and the land of Mr Brown. 

A dispute arose in 2018, when the hedge and fence were removed to prepare for the Ridleys to undertake building work, when it was discovered that part of Mr Brown’s land had been enclosed within the boundary established by the hedge and fence. This strip of land became the “disputed land” between the neighbours.

The Ridleys had treated the disputed land as their own garden since 2004, and intended to construct a new house which would partly be built upon the area in dispute. 

In 2019, the Ridleys applied to HM Land Registry to become the legal owners of the disputed land under the principle of adverse possession, pursuant to paragraph 5(4) of Schedule of the LRA 2002 which requires as follows:

• the land to which the application relates is adjacent to land belonging to the applicant;
• the exact line of the boundary between the two has not been determined; and
• for at least ten years of the period of adverse possession ending on the date of the application, the applicant (or any predecessor in title) reasonably believed that the land to which the application related belonged to him.

The First-tier Tribunal found in favour of the Ridleys, saying that they owned the disputed land because of the principles of adverse possession. Mr Brown appealed the decision to the Upper Tribunal. 

The Upper Tribunal found in favour of Mr Brown, relying on the precedent established in a case called Zarb v Parry. In Zarb v Parry, the court said that a party applying for adverse possession must have believed the land belonged to them for a period of ten years ending on the date the application was made. The Upper Tribunal found in favour of Mr Brown because the Ridleys had only discovered that the disputed land may have belonged to Mr Brown in 2018, approximately one year before the application was made for adverse possession.

It was then the turn of the Ridleys to appeal, and they took the matter to the Supreme Court. 

The Supreme Court, were faced with deciding whether an applicant for adverse possession had to actually believe the land was theirs for ten years (specifically ending on the date of the application) or whether any ten-year period before the application was made would suffice, the latter of which being what the Ridleys were arguing.

The Supreme Court agreed with the Ridleys and they were allowed to keep the disputed land.

Get legal help with adverse possession case

If you are involved in a dispute about a boundary with your neighbour and someone has made an adverse possession claim against your land, or you want to claim land you have possessed for ten years or more, it is a good idea to seek legal advice as quickly as possible. Ascertaining whether land is yours or whether you have a claim over it can be complicated.

Applications to the Land Registry can take some time to be dealt with, and you will need to provide specific evidence to go with your application. At Samuels Solicitors LLP we have many years of experience helping clients claim land which they have been using as their own, as well as resisting adverse possessions applications and we can help you deal with these cases quickly and cost effectively. 

If you would like to speak to a specialist property litigator, contact us today to find out how we can help.