Adverse Possession

In a world where it is becoming harder and harder to own properties, many have become desperate to own an abode they call their own. These dire times have called for dire actions, but in reality there is more than one way to get a house of your own. Through means of adverse possession, one can acquire the rights to land by simply living in it for a while. This usually means there is no need for purchase of the land, one simply acquires it. While adverse possession is vastly more complicated than that, this blog aims to explain how adverse possession works for your legal knowledge.

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Adverse possession is a right that allows one to claim the right to land owned by another. Most often one gains adverse possession by using an unused part of land such as a forgotten private driveway over the course of an amount of time. These specifics will be outlined in the following paragraph. Adverse possession often ends in the favor of the person who used the land rather than the owner. This occurs as the law favors the use of the land, not the possession. In many ways, this topic is much more complicated than this. For the sake of simplification and understanding for the rest of this blog, this is mostly what adverse possession is.

There are several conditions to adverse possession that regulate what types of properties and how long one must use a property to claim it as their own. The following laws are specific for Massachusetts, however it is unlikely these laws change drastically state to state. If you are curious to see your own state’s position on adverse possession, feel free to use your state’s website for help. Primarily, land owned by the state or railroad property can not be claimed for obvious reasons. Second, land must be claimed within 20 years to be owned via adverse possession, this law exists with exceptions. Position or use of the land must be open to have it be claimed to avoid clear issues that could result. 

In the case Pearley Cook vs. Camden Babcock, adverse possession can be seen in action. While the case was argued in 1853, it is still very much relevant to adverse possession today. Cook had sued Babcock over having cut down trees on land he climbed to be his own. The defendant, or the accused, claimed right to the land under a deed to the land given to him by his father Abel Babcock. The plaintiff, or the accuser had claimed right to the land under the grounds of adverse possession.

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The plaintiff had shown use of the land by proof of having tended to it. The lead opinion of the judge, Bigelow J, has stated the following. The dissemination of land must be openly used, owned, and adversely possessed by another for the ownership to be rightfully transferred. The opinion had agreed that these elements had been present in the plaintiff. It is not solely sufficient for the legal owner of the land to have known that another was using it but rather that the one using the land was not ‘kicked out’. The opinion had ended by stating they believed it would be best“to set aside the verdict and order a new trial."

That's a brief summary of adverse possession. 

65 Mass. 206

“Massachusetts law about adverse possession.” mass.gov, 10 September 2025, https://www.mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-law-about-adverse-possession.

“Adverse Possession Under Property Law”, Justia, December 2025, https://www.justia.com/real-estate/home-ownership/owning-a-home/adverse-possession/