My query relates to property inherited by me recently. There is an old farm road on one of the fields overgrown and impassable for years and bounded on one side by a neighbour’s land. That farm road was never used by my late brother in his 43 years of ownership. It was cleared and opened by the neighbour without my knowledge or permission.
How can I ascertain if that farm road was definitely owned by my brother? It is my understanding that it was my late brother’s as it was on his EU aerial map and shown as land road and the area of it deducted for purposes of calculating his EU entitlements.
The land in question was purchased by my brother through the Land Commission circa 1977. Is it possible to prove the ownership of the land road and if it was not merely a lane between the two farms as might be the opinion of neighbour? The farm road has ditches on both sides and from the land Registry map it would definitely appear to be on my brother’s land.
Sarah Sherlock replies: The ownership of property is a legal matter and not a matter that your surveyor will answer. Therefore, you will need to consult with your solicitor and seek their assistance too.
Since you mention the property is registered with the Property Registration Authority (PRA) you will need to obtain a full colour copy of the instrument created at the birth of the folio. Contained within is a copy of the map used to register the title and so too will the necessary deeds. If the farm road is not registered within your folio (assuming the property abutting it is not registered with the PRA) you will need to get the title deeds.
Your surveyor will then go through their findings with you and your solicitor and this will enable you to make informed decisions
There may be a few deeds that ought to be consulted eg the one when the property was first divided (this may be a 1977 severance created by the Land Commission) and the one in which you acquired your interest in the property. Where possible, it is best that you and your neighbour do this aspect together because you may discover that the farm road is shown common to both. Hopefully not, but it is not an impossible outcome!
The surveyor will not require all the information that your solicitor will; however, there is a significant amount of important overlap. Title deeds will have a parcels clause, which set out exactly [also known as the written description of the property] what is comprised in the property and typically there will be a map attached too. These are what the surveyor requires.
Since there is a question as to the ownership of the farm road, there is a requirement to define it accurately and precisely – that is done by way of a survey. The particular type of survey that you require is a Ground Truth Survey (GTS). This is performed using specialist surveying equipment. The surveyors will measure and record all relevant features as they exist on the ground at the time of survey for the purpose of making a detailed map.
The GTS is then compared to and examined against all of the necessary title and at the end of the process your surveyor will be in a position to inform you as to whether or not the farm road fallsle within the confines of your title.
Your surveyor will then go through their findings with you and your solicitor and this will enable you to make informed decisions when engaging with your neighbour to finalise matters.
Whilst you have every reason to expect the EU Entitlement Map shows what your brother owned at the time; you cannot be certain that it does. Many farmers “take ground” eg leasing, renting or whatever and in circumstances such as those, areas are frequently shown that bear little resemblance to ownership. Most importantly, although they are useful for reference, those maps were never created for the purpose of depicting ownership and therefore it is inappropriate to use them for such claims. The GTS and the deeds are the first port of call when you want to prove ownership.
Sarah Sherlock is a chartered geomatics surveyor and member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland scsi.ie
