Jennifer joined LegalMatch in 2020 as a Legal Writer. She holds a J.D. from the Cumberland School of Law and has been a member of the Alabama State Bar since 2012. She is a mediator and certified ad litem tutor. She holds a B.A. in Criminology and Criminal Justice and a B.A. in Spanish, both from Auburn University. Jennifer`s favorite part of her legal work is research and writing. Jennifer enjoyed being a law clerk for a respected district judge in Alabama. She is a housewife and home teacher of three children. She enjoys reading and taking long evening walks with her husband.

There are many types of border disputes and many areas of law, which are often triggered by a border dispute. This means that not all border disputes are resolved equally. Here are some examples of your typical types of border disputes: Perhaps a solid, threatening letter on legal stationery will at least stop the building. If a letter and a threat of lawsuit don`t prompt the neighbor to stop, don`t waste time getting a lawyer order from a judge to temporarily arrest the neighbor until a civil lawsuit for trespassing (without permission on your property) can be brought before the judge. Don`t expect to sue your neighbor to improve your relationship with them. This will make your relationship more controversial. Unfortunately, if you`re dealing with an unruly neighbor, legal action may be the only way to resolve the border dispute. Q-2, LLC v. Hughes, 2016 UT 8 – Ownership of disputed property is transferred when boundary elements are determined by acquiescence, even if the dispute is not resolved by agreement or legal action at that time.

If you and your neighbour can`t agree on where you think the line should be, you may be able to get help from a trained mediator. A mediator helps people iron out difficulties and reach an agreement that is satisfactory to all parties involved. Mediation of conflicts between neighbours is often free or very inexpensive. A Michigan border dispute can be resolved either through negotiations between the parties involved or in court, such as in a silent title lawsuit. Acquiescence is an important legal theory that such a plaintiff can assert, among other possible theories such as adverse possession, prescription servitude, fair forfeiture, mutual error, and others. Property lines (also called bounding lines) are the invisible lines that define your property. They are described in your title deed and tell you where your property ends and your neighbours` begins. Permanent border monuments or survey marks are protected by state laws. A marker can be a natural landmark, such as a tree. Or a surveyor may place iron stakes or small brass hats in the ground to officially mark the property lines. In Massachusetts, anyone who removes such a marker can be jailed for six months or fined $50 or both.

(9) The penalty is more severe in the District of Columbia, where the fine may be up to $1,000 and imprisonment may be for one full year. (10) The law is similar and very strict in other states. Arkansas imposes a fine of at least $500, a jail term of at least 30 days, or both. (11) The representation concerning the location of the border must be asserted – an implicit or derived representation is not sufficient. NOTE: This summary is very simplified and is for informational purposes. If you have any questions about this in a dispute with a local government or a condemning institution, please contact the Office of the Property Rights Ombudsman. If you need legal advice in a private civil matter, we recommend that you consult a licensed lawyer who can advise you on your legal options or represent you in civil proceedings. If a dividing line is not clear and neighbors can`t agree, some states have legal procedures that allow a neighbor to ask a state court (ordinary court, not a small claims court) to settle the line.

This will likely involve a court-ordered reinvestigation and will be costly. In other states, you can hire an attorney and sue for “silent title” (deciding who owns what). Again, the judge can order a survey, and it will take a lot of time and money. In order to bind subsequent owners to the same agreement, it must be demonstrated that the agreed boundary has been marked or clearly identified so that a buyer is informed of the location of the border. Sometimes the exact location of a property`s boundaries can be disputed by homeowners. Over time, inaccurate measurements and forgotten ideas can lead to confusion about where a border is located. Ideally, such disputes should be completely avoided by specific measures and professional real estate investigations. In reality, however, there are various circumstances in which a legal property boundary is called into question. A disputed boundary between two parcels of land may be settled by agreement of neighbouring landowners or by action before the district court.

The Utah Supreme Court has developed very clear rules for resolving boundary disputes, as in Bahr v. Imus, 2011 UT 19. Yes, as mentioned above, property boundaries are subject to change. Property boundaries are usually determined by a professional real estate survey, which is carried out by a professional real estate appraiser. The land surveyor locates the exact boundaries of a property and produces a report that includes: Survey costs typically range from $500 to several thousand dollars. A person can expect to pay more for their survey if there are multiple survey maps or if the land has not been surveyed for a long time. But if someone challenges the dividing line in court – perhaps the next buyer of one of the properties who is unhappy or confused with the agreed boundary – and the true dividing line could easily have been found, the general rule is that the owners` agreement doesn`t count. A judge can only make an exception to this requirement if the owners have relied on the agreement for many years and there would be great damage caused by non-recognition of the agreed line. To establish a clear boundary, adjacent owners can decide where they want to be, and then do so that way by signing deeds outlining the agreed boundary. If you have a mortgage on the property, contact a local lawyer for help drafting deeds. Whoever holds the mortgage may need to be notified and get permission before transferring even a small piece of land. Some mortgage companies will not be affected or will want to participate.

However, others have included a clause in the mortgage that allows the company to demand full and immediate payment of the entire loan if the borrower transfers interest on the property. If two owners cause confusion by agreeing on a dividing line, the line should be physically obvious in some way. Often a natural fence or border marks the line. It can be a tree, a road, a stream, a driveway or even the edge of a house. Otherwise, something must be built or piles or other marks placed in the ground so that the owners can indicate the line. Keep in mind, however, that your bank (or your neighbor`s bank) may not approve a boundary change if one or both homes are still under mortgage. It is not necessary for the owners to formally agree that the monument marks the boundaries of the property; Acceptance or tolerance is sufficient. This can be demonstrated by the actions of landowners in relation to the location of the boundary.

If a dividing line cannot be found because the documents or maps are ambiguous, the two adjacent neighbors can simply agree on the location of the demarcation line. Once this agreement is concluded and certain conditions (see below) are met, the line is the permanent legal limit. It is binding not only for these neighbors, but also for subsequent buyers. (1) The agreement does not affect the ownership of the land. Instead, it interprets ambiguous property descriptions in deeds. Zoning issues arise from zoning laws. Depending on zoning laws, land can be regulated in terms of land use, height or cover. Zoning laws set out the regulations that apply to each type of zone. Examples of land disputes related to zoning issues may include the location of a property line, which indicates where business activities may or may not be conducted. Zoning issues can also affect access to public spaces.

The land surveyor does his job by searching for the current title deed. A document describes the location and boundaries of a property. In addition, the land surveyor conducts a title search that reveals the ownership history of a property and shows how ownership was transferred from one person to another. Disputes over property boundaries can be further complicated by the involvement of local or local governments. Municipal boards or agencies are often responsible for setting boundaries based on historical use and local resources, as well as other factors. If the municipality interferes with the right of residence, this could lead to legal action against the municipality. The second theory is tolerance after a dispute and agreement, also called the doctrine of practical place. If adjacent landowners have a dispute over the boundary line, but resolve it by express or implied agreement that establishes a particular line as a boundary, that line becomes the true boundary if they treat it as such over time.