Property Law- Adverse Possession.

PROPERTY LAW - Adverse Possession Introduction To understand the comments made by Young J in Shaw v Garbutt (1996) 7 BPR 14 at 816, it is necessary to discuss the doctrine of adverse possession, it's requirements and the history of how this law has been interpreted. Philosophy of adverse possession The basic underlying philosophy for the doctrine of adverse possession is that historically land use has been favoured over disuse. The doctrine protects ownership by barring stale claims of …

…owner gives a circumstance where each party can exercise the rights to possession of that land. Whilst possession must be considered in every case with reference to the peculiar circumstances it is a requirement that all acts of possession be peaceable and without force, where peaceable infers uninterrupted and without force infers without violence. Protests and argument may not prevent the finding of adverse possession but obstruction and the use of unlawful physical force would.