Overlapping Registered Titles and a Fence That Does Not Match the Diagram
You are a registered land surveyor instructed by the purchaser of Lot 14, a 0.4512 ha parcel in Santa Cruz, St Elizabeth, registered under the Registration of Titles Act. The title plan, deposited in 1998, shows straight boundaries defined by bearings and distances and a concrete mark at the north-east corner inscribed 'LS 1974'. The vendor's fence encloses about 0.52 ha and includes a strip roughly 3.2 m wide along the eastern side that falls within the neighbouring Lot 15, registered in 2001. You find the original concrete mark 0.9 m west of the fence corner. The neighbour states that the fence has been in place for more than 25 years and refuses access to remove vegetation. The purchaser wants the survey 'to follow the fence' so that the sale can close next week, and the vendor's attorney asks for a certificate of boundary. A recent GNSS check puts the found mark within 0.04 m of the 1998 plan coordinate.
1. How should you establish the boundary between Lots 14 and 15, and what weight should you give to the found concrete mark, the 1998 plan dimensions, and the existing fence?
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Start from the principle that a boundary survey is evidence-based, not an exercise in making occupation fit the client's wishes. Search first for the original monument: the 1998 deposited plan, the Lot 15 plan, any parish or registry records, and the concrete mark inscribed 'LS 1974'. An original mark placed by the surveyor who created the parcel generally carries more weight than later occupation. The 1998 bearings and distances are secondary evidence; they can check the mark and help re-establish missing marks, but a 0.9 m offset between the mark and the fence is not a reason to reject the mark. The fence is occupation evidence only. It may support a boundary agreement or a possession claim, but it does not by itself move a registered boundary. I would measure the found mark, search for the other corners and reference marks, check the GNSS position against the plan coordinate (0.04 m is a useful check but not proof of title), and compute the overlap between the registered parcels. The plan should show the registered boundary, the found marks, and the fence or occupation line separately. If the mark is original, I would re-establish from it and report the overlap; I would not shift the line to the fence merely to close the sale.
2. The neighbour refuses access and claims more than 25 years of possession. What are your professional and practical options, and what should you tell the purchaser?
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Access: do not enter against refusal. Write to the neighbour explaining the purpose of the survey and the minimum area needed, and offer a specific time. If access is still refused, use public-road observations, offset measurements, GNSS, existing marks, and any available aerial or registry evidence. Ask the client's attorney to obtain consent or a court order if entry is essential. Do not remove vegetation without permission. Possession: 25 years of fencing may raise adverse possession, prescription, or boundary agreement issues, but the surveyor does not decide title. Under a Torrens-style system such as the Registration of Titles Act, registered title is generally indefeasible subject to statutory exceptions and overriding interests; limitation and prescription are legal questions for the attorney and the court. I would record the occupation, the neighbour's stated dates, and the discrepancy, then advise the purchaser that the fenced area is not automatically included in the registered title and that legal advice is needed. I would not tell the purchaser that the fence line is the boundary. If the parties reach a boundary agreement, their attorneys can document it, and a later survey can reflect the agreed line only if it is legally effective.
3. What should appear on the plan and in your report, and would you certify the boundary as the vendor's attorney requests?
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The plan should show the registered boundaries of Lots 14 and 15 from the deposited plans, all found marks with descriptions and condition, the fence and occupation line, the computed overlap or strip, the GNSS and control coordinates with datum and epoch, an accuracy statement, and notes on access limitations. The report should set out instructions, documents searched, the evidence hierarchy, measurements and computations, assumptions, limitations, and the fact that the fence does not match the registered boundary. I would certify what I actually observed and computed, including the position of the found mark and the relationship of occupation to title. I would not certify that the fence line is the legal boundary. If the client insists on such a certificate, I would decline and explain why. If the parties want to resolve the overlap, I would recommend a boundary agreement or a corrected plan and title process through their attorneys, not a survey certificate that conceals the conflict.