Q: What is the law regarding adverse possession of property bordering our property?
An old fence was erected when our house was built in 1990. There are old fruit trees planted on our side of the fence. The fence is about 30 feet from our actual property line. The area on our side of the fence has been maintained by our prior property owners before we purchased the property and now we are maintaining that area since we purchased the property in 2016. On the other side of the fence is a utility service path along the fence which we have been mowing and maintaining, beyond that is an open meadow which is not being maintained. Can we claim ownership of the area within the fence?
A:
While your facts appear to support your claim of adverse possession, and there is a reasonable likelihood of success, it's not easy or clearcut. Simply, you need to get a lawyer on board - if only for advice - and see what else you need to do to cement your claim.
Adverse possession requires a number of elements: "Time" (your facts say you have this); "Open and Notorious" (anyone can see you claim it); "Exclusive" (the fence helps here); 'Hostile" (meaning you claim the right to the property ahead of anyone else to the point of evicting those who transgress the property line). The one you may have trouble with is the last one: "Claim of Right" -- this is where you point to the starting point of the possession and have some sort of document on which you base the claim - even if the claim is mistaken (the 'time' factor can cure the mistake).
My suggestion is get to an experienced lawyer and find out if you need to do anything else to strengthen your claim of ownership. In addition, rather than run to the courthouse to file suit to establish your claim, it may be better to continue to 'lay low' and if someone else wants to claim the property let them proceed with the burden of proving their claim is better than yours.
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