TerraBites
A short newsletter of bite-size ideas to chew on for Terrafirma owner-member land trusts, released January, February, March, May, June, September, October and November.
Like large equipment parked on conserved parcels for a long time, encroachments are on the rise. While such actions may not meet the statutory test for an adverse possession claim, the land trust still must foot the bill to disprove a lawsuit claiming such. Identify the encroachment during pre-acquisition due diligence and resolve the encroachment before entering the chain of title! This is another great reason to have a formal practice of including stewardship review and comment on all acquisition transactions in the design and drafting phases with a full boundary investigation and documentation. Consider these proactive prevention steps and suggestions.
We’re here to help! If you have any questions, please let us know.
Over the past year, Terrafirma has seen an increase in boundary-related claims like encroachment, trespass and adverse possession. Two recurring themes are that the land trust suspected the violation was occurring for years but had not verified the property boundary line or thought the nominal trespass did not merit filing a Terrafirma claim. Many of these claims, unfortunately, were denied coverage due to being untimely filed. Some of the problems could have been stopped or abated earlier if the land trust identified the boundary lines and acted promptly.
Terrafirma offers practical considerations for land trusts during monitoring visits to help you identify boundary issues.
Please contact Leslie Ratley-Beach if you have questions about boundary-related matters.
Sincerely,
Tom Kester
Operations Manager and Secretary
Alliance Risk Management Services LLC
Manager for Terrafirma Risk Retention Group LLC
When your land trust accepts an easement, it obtains a real estate interest in the easement under most state enabling acts. If you have a boundary disagreement with a neighbor to either fee land or easement land, you have the right to get a boundary survey. If you delay boundary surveys, it may be too late to address serious continuous encroachments as trespassers may gain rights over time. So get a boundary survey promptly to ensure that you identify potential legal disputes in the early stages when crafting a solution is relatively simple.
We’re here to help! If you have any questions about boundary surveys or anything else, please let us know. You can email us directly or call 202-800-2219 for Lorri or 802-262-6051 for Leslie.
