Boundary Disputes
First Steps into Finding the Correct Position of a Boundary
Alan Wibberely Building Ltd v Insley 1999
“…the law on boundaries should be as clear as possible”.
Judges should try and encourage the parties to settle the disputes before they get to court.
Strachey v Ramage [2008] EWCA Civ 384, Lord Justice Sedley quoted William Shakespeare to
describe the small, contentious piece of land at the centre of the dispute:
"...a little patch of ground that hath no profit in it but the name."
Boundary disputes have increased over the years, despite the costs associated with them.
Lord Westbury to Megarry J in Wroth v Taylor 1974:
“Deeds may be difficult to read, disgusting to touch and impossible to understand”.
Deeds, for example, may reflect landmarks that were present decades ago that no longer exist, and
because of that uncertainty, Judges have found new ways of trying to settle the disputes. One
notable principle being that of adverse possession.
Adverse
Possession
A legal
principle
allowing a
person to
claim
ownership
of land or
property by
occupying it
exclusively,
openly, and
without the
owner's
consent for
a
continuous,
statutory
period.
Generally,
this requires
10 years of
occupation
for
registered
land or 12
years for
unregistere
d land. They
key
requirement
s are as
follows:
, Clapham v Narga [2024] EWCA Civ 1388 – “Indeed I regard this as one of the great virtues of the
doctrine of adverse possession as it applied to unregistered land. Once neighbours had been in
undisputed possession of their respective properties for 12 years, that gave them ownership of the
land they each possessed, with the result that the boundary between their lands would follow the de
facto position on the ground without the need for anyone to go back to the historic conveyances by
which their properties were first separated. The practical effect was to favour the claims of those who
had long been in peaceful possession of land over those who had, or arguably had, a mere paper
title. That, I think, tended to reduce the number of boundary disputes, which all too often arouse
great passions but usually cost far more than the property in issue is worth.”
Terminology of the Land Registry
Title Deeds - Legal paper documents proving ownership of land or property, including
conveyances, contracts, and wills.
Conveyance Plans - Detailed, scaled drawings used in property transactions to precisely define the
boundaries, extent, and features of land being sold, leased, or registered. Plans must include a North
point, be drawn to a specific scale (usually 1:1250 or 1:2500 for urban/rural), and clearly mark the
property boundary in red edging.
First Steps into Finding the Correct Position of a Boundary
Alan Wibberely Building Ltd v Insley 1999
“…the law on boundaries should be as clear as possible”.
Judges should try and encourage the parties to settle the disputes before they get to court.
Strachey v Ramage [2008] EWCA Civ 384, Lord Justice Sedley quoted William Shakespeare to
describe the small, contentious piece of land at the centre of the dispute:
"...a little patch of ground that hath no profit in it but the name."
Boundary disputes have increased over the years, despite the costs associated with them.
Lord Westbury to Megarry J in Wroth v Taylor 1974:
“Deeds may be difficult to read, disgusting to touch and impossible to understand”.
Deeds, for example, may reflect landmarks that were present decades ago that no longer exist, and
because of that uncertainty, Judges have found new ways of trying to settle the disputes. One
notable principle being that of adverse possession.
Adverse
Possession
A legal
principle
allowing a
person to
claim
ownership
of land or
property by
occupying it
exclusively,
openly, and
without the
owner's
consent for
a
continuous,
statutory
period.
Generally,
this requires
10 years of
occupation
for
registered
land or 12
years for
unregistere
d land. They
key
requirement
s are as
follows:
, Clapham v Narga [2024] EWCA Civ 1388 – “Indeed I regard this as one of the great virtues of the
doctrine of adverse possession as it applied to unregistered land. Once neighbours had been in
undisputed possession of their respective properties for 12 years, that gave them ownership of the
land they each possessed, with the result that the boundary between their lands would follow the de
facto position on the ground without the need for anyone to go back to the historic conveyances by
which their properties were first separated. The practical effect was to favour the claims of those who
had long been in peaceful possession of land over those who had, or arguably had, a mere paper
title. That, I think, tended to reduce the number of boundary disputes, which all too often arouse
great passions but usually cost far more than the property in issue is worth.”
Terminology of the Land Registry
Title Deeds - Legal paper documents proving ownership of land or property, including
conveyances, contracts, and wills.
Conveyance Plans - Detailed, scaled drawings used in property transactions to precisely define the
boundaries, extent, and features of land being sold, leased, or registered. Plans must include a North
point, be drawn to a specific scale (usually 1:1250 or 1:2500 for urban/rural), and clearly mark the
property boundary in red edging.
