Property Unit 2 Adverse Possession Terms

Adverse Possession of Land

possession for a statutorily prescribed period of time can, if COAH is met, ripen into title.

Tacking

the ability to add-on time of a previous possessor to satisfy the statute of limitations, so long as the previous possessors are in privity and they have maintained a continuous occupation.

Privity

Any non-hostile nexus between the possessors; it is non-existent where there is ouster.

Ouster

Wrongful removal of someone by force; it is actionable

COAH: Continuity

require continuous occupation to give the true owner notice

COAH: Open and Notorious

Possession is open and notorious when it is visible and apparent, such that a reasonable owner would be on notice that someone is asserting dominion over the land.

COAH: Actual and Exclusive

the entry cannot be symbolic; it has to be actual entry. If the true owner is sharing possession with the adverse possessor, the presumption is that the possession is permissive.

COAH: Hostile

this is not a subjective claim of right; it is an outward declaration of possession. It means to be there without the permission of the owner.

If the true owner allows the possessor to possess, it defeats the adverse possession, as the possession is no longer adverse. Does not necessarily have to be explicit permission

Claim of title/right

Claim of title (or claim of right) exists where a possessor occupies land with the intent to hold it as their own, without the true owner’s permission, thereby satisfying the hostility requirement of adverse possession, even in the absence of a written instrument.

Color of title

Color of title exists where a possessor enters and occupies land under a defective written instrument (such as a deed or judgment) that purports to convey title, and such possession may extend constructively to the entire parcel described in the instrument, so long as the possessor actually occupies part of the land and no other person is in actual possession of the remainder.

Ejectment

the action to get someone off your property