adverse possession

American  

noun

Law.

1. the open and exclusive occupation and use of someone else's real property without permission of the owner continuously for a period of years prescribed by law, thereafter giving title to the occupier-user.

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adverse possession British  

noun

1. property law the occupation or possession of land by a person not legally entitled to it. If continued unopposed for a period specifed by law, such occupation extinguishes the title of the rightful owner

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Example Sentences

The move sparked a dispute, at the heart of which was a legal principle known as adverse possession, or 'squatters rights', which allows someone to claim land if they have used it as their own for enough time.

From BBC

The case was first heard by a First-tier Tribunal, that ruled the couple had only clearly taken possession of the land from about 2018, falling short of the 10 years required for an adverse possession ruling.

From BBC

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole here; the property has been tied up in a legal dispute since late 2012, and then an additional case was opened in 2018 about adverse possession.

From Literature

Under Maryland law, trespassers can obtain legal title to a property by occupying it for 20 years, even without permission, through a process called “adverse possession.”

From Washington Post

"It’s so ironic that the family promotes themselves as Christians, but this is the most unchristian thing you can possibly do. Maybe they bought land from someone who had no right to sell it, and even if for the sake of argument he did, my client is the rightful owner by adverse possession," Zaffino argues.

From Fox News