White-Baos Lawyers: New court success,Ownership Claim against our clients dismissed. Property Dispute. Legal Advice

When it comes to properties built on plots of land, ownership claims and boundary disputes between neighbours are quite frequent. In today’s article, we analyse the main legal tool for this type of claim, with the help of a recent court case in which we, White-Baos Lawyers have successfully defended our clients from an ownership claim filed against their property.

This type of legal action is foreseen so that any person can apply to a judge that what is rightfully theirs (and is currently in the hands of another person) is returned to them. In Spain it is known as ‘Accion Reivindicatoria’ and it is regulated in article 348 of the Civil Code. For this type of claim to be successful, three requirements must be fulfilled:

First, the petitioner must prove that he has a right of ownership over the thing claimed. This will be accredited, most of the time, with a title deed. Although there are exceptions such as the usucaption (you can find out more information about this legal concept below). Secondly, the plaintiff must be in possession of the thing claimed and possess it without a title that allows him to do so. Finally, the thing claimed (in this case, a few metres of land) must be identified in a clear and precise manner.

What happened in the above-mentioned court case?

More than 40 years ago, a plot of land was divided into two independent properties, by the construction of a wall. One was bought by the plaintiff. The other was bought by our clients. The plaintiff, by means of an expert report, argues that his plot has less metres than the ones appearing in the Land Registry. And he also claims that the opposite happens with our clients: they have more metres than they really should.

His assumption is that these extra metres correspond to the defendants. During the trial we will prove that the ‘extra’ metres claimed are not identified in the specific and concrete way required by case law. Also, since the plots of the adjoining neighbours were not measured, it was not possible to rule out that the missing metres could be in possession of other plots.

The judge ruled in favour of our clients, who will now continue enjoying their property, undisturbed. In addition, the plaintiff was ordered to pay all court costs.

At White-Baos Lawyers we are experts in Property Litigation. If you have a conflict with any neighbour, and you consider that your property rights are being challenged, please, do not hesitate to contact us. We will study your case and offer you expert advice on the matter.

You may be interested in the following services and articles:

LITIGATION: civil jurisdiction, consumers, Real Estate Litigations: claims against the builder, tenancy disputes, community of owners, etc.

REAL ESTATE LAW IN SPAIN: Is your property registered at the Catastro as well as the Registro? Who cares? Here’s a simple way to find out and why it pays to do so.

Claim compensation in the purchase and sale of real estate properties in Spain. Handing over a smaller property.

Carlos Baos (Lawyer)

White & Baos.

Tel: +34 966 426 185

E-mail: info@white-baos.com

White & Baos 2022 – All Rights Reserved.

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