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

So, we filed an action to return the property using arcane legal theory known as adverse possession.

From MSNBC • May 29, 2019

But, he said it did not seem like the person in Gwynn’s house was actually a case where any type of adverse possession applied.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 9, 2019

“There’s an old theory called adverse possession that you learn in property law,” she said.

From The New Yorker • May 22, 2017

Knight said in his argument that the plan to stake a claim through adverse possession proves there was a conspiracy.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 19, 2016

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 "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy