There has been much said on the doctrine of Adverse Possession from the perspective of the person who is asserting or applying for adverse possession, and not necessarily from that of the registered proprietor or landowner. The landowners who have been at the receiving end of this doctrine, have always spoken to the “should-a, could-a, would-a” of what they may have done differently in order to have defeated a claim of adverse possession of their land. With land being as valuable as it is, it is essential to take heed of these simple steps to avoid falling victim to losing your land to an adverse possessor. 

Under the Limitation of Actions Act, a person seeking to claim adverse possession of land must show that he or she has been in open, peaceful, undisturbed, and exclusive possession of the land, continuously for 12 years, to the exclusion of the legal owner or registered proprietor, where the legal owner or registered proprietor is not the Government. As the famous saying goes, “possession is 9/10th of the law”, and accordingly, you must assert possessory rights over your land for such an application to be prevented. In asserting your rights over your land you should:-

  • ● Secure the boundary of the property. Whether by chicken wire, or chain-link, or concrete fencing, you should always ensure that you have secured the boundaries of your property. 
  • ● Clean and clear. If the property is empty land, ensure that it is bushed or cleared at regular intervals. 
  • ● Collect your rent. If the property is a rental property, ensure you collect your rent. Case law has illustrated that a tenant can extinguish the title of the registered proprietor if rent is not collected, and other elements of adverse possession are satisfied.
  • ● Visits are a must. Visit the property as often as you can. Ensure that on these visits you enter onto the property and inspect the premises for signs of trespassers and the like. 
  • ● Signage. Consider placing “No Trespassing” or “Private Property” signs on the property.
  • ● Pay what is due to Caesar unto Caesar. A common misconception held by many Jamaicans is that once an adverse possessor pays the property tax for a property, their application for adverse possession will be successful. This is not correct, but the payment of taxes can be supporting evidence in the adverse possessor’s application. It is therefore critical that you pay your property taxes and ensure that your name remains on the tax roll. 
  • ● Know thy Neighbours. Any application for adverse possession must rely on evidence. It is advisable to ensure that as a landowner, you know most, if not all of your adjoining neighbours, so that they may contact you if they observe any suspicious activity on the land, and so that they are not likely to make a voluntary declaration in support of another’s adverse possession application against you. 
  • ● Keep up-to-date on statutory requirements. It is prudent to ensure that all statutory requirements in relation to the land are up to date. Where land is owned by a company, the company ought to be kept in compliance with its statutory obligations to prevent it from being struck from the roll of Companies. If such a company is struck-off, without more, this could be evidence of the abandonment of its property. 

As a landowner, don’t be caught saying “should-a, could-a, would-a”. It is imperative that you carry out regular acts of possession over your land, lest it turns into, as we say in Jamaica, “captured land”.