Common law prescription, also known as adverse possession, is a legal doctrine that allows individuals to claim ownership of land through continuous and uninterrupted use or occupation for a specified period of time, typically set by statute or judicial precedent. In common law jurisdictions, including the United Kingdom and the United States, adverse possession allows a person who openly occupies land without the owner’s permission to acquire legal title to the property if certain conditions are met, such as exclusive, continuous, visible, and hostile possession for a specified period, often ranging from several years to decades. Adverse possession serves to promote the efficient use and allocation of land resources, as well as providing a mechanism for resolving disputes over long-standing property boundaries or ownership claims. However, the requirements for adverse possession vary by jurisdiction, and the process can be complex, often requiring court intervention to adjudicate disputes and determine the legitimacy of adverse possession claims.
Traditionally, to acquire an Easement by Prescription under the common law has required that the easement be exercised ‘since time immemorial’. Since ‘time immemorial’ was, and still is, deemed to extend back to 1189, it was very difficult to establish that the purported easement had been in use continuously since that time.
The modern approach is to allow the easement to be prescribed if it has been in continuous use for twenty years, and if there is no reason why it could not have been in existence in 1189. Of course, all the other characteristics of an easement must also be present.
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This glossary post was last updated: 29th March, 2024.
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