large trees ...outside garden boundary

one of my customers has a biggish back garden which backs on to a neglected area full of trees and some rubbish......mostly wood,,,, it belongs to an estate but they are not interested in maintaining it, indeed some1 has "taken over" a part of it.........
he is concerned that some trees are dead and also others are blocking light....... these are big conifers which must have been planted be4 the houses were built [1950's]
how should he go about this,,,,, he d like to cut trees down to half size [ie to 30 foot],..see next post

 

he has some idea that if he cultivates this lands, he will "inherit" it....... but does this not refer to areas where land ownership is unknown........ this ground is in Scotland
....any views?

 

My understanding of this (in England) is that if you take possesion of the 'unwanted' land by fencing it in or presumably, cultivating it. Then if the owner hasn't objected after a certain number of years (8, 15 ?) then its legally yours. Best check with solicitor ! :confused:

 

He would need to be very careful indeed - cutting trees on land that belongs to someone else without permission, would not only meet the criteria of trespass, but could also meet the criteria of criminal damage.

In respect of taking over some-one else's land, again he would need to be very careful - and not only check with an appropriately specialised solicitor, but probably the council. There have been a couple of cases locally where some-one in the past has done just that - in both cases, the boundaries were re-established. Certainly if the land is registered with the land registry - the boundaries of both properties are recorded.

Why doesn't he just see if he can purchase that particular bit?

 

Law in Scotland is very different to England in this regard. There is no such thing as 'Sqatter's Right's' in Scotland. You need to do a land registry search, determine the rightfull owner and either obtain permission to cultivate or purchase the land.

These days anyone asking about derilict land is likely to find that it very soon apears on the open market and the price will rocket - especially if there is evidence of old buildings or if planning permission for housing can be obtained.

All this is a legal nightmare and you need an experienced Solcitor.