Know your boundaries!

Boundary disputes are usually expensive for the parties and often difficult to resolve because of a lack of legal evidence.   However, in a recent case, Pennock and another v Hodgson (2010), the Court of Appeal decided that physical features can be considered as well as the legal documents in order to find out where the boundary actually is. This may seem obvious but the arguments are all about where the legal boundary is, and this may be different to the physical features on site.  For example, following a land transfer an owner may claim that he owns land either side of a hedge or wall so the hedge cannot be the legal boundary.

Why is this case important?

Although not new law in itself, this case again shows how complex boundary disputes can be and that, if there is uncertainty, the courts will consider other evidence to interpret what is meant by the relevant deed. Therefore if you are entering into any land transaction it is very important that you carefully check out the precise boundaries and make sure there are no obvious discrepancies between the deeds (especially the plan) and the boundaries on site. This extra care at the beginning can save a lot of expense, stress and ill-will later – after which you still might not get the result you wanted or expected.    If in doubt take legal advice as early as possible and always be prepared to consider a compromise with your neighbour.


These notes are intended as general guidance only and should not be relied on in any specific circumstances without additional specialist legal advice.

Please call David Heys on 0116 212 1027 or Katherine Cereghino on 0116 212 1148 for more information or if you have any questions.