[Gramp]

Hi folks,
I have recently purchased a house with a few acres in central Scotland. I was advised by the previous owners that a nearby field, which is about an acre of pasture, where they kept a couple of sheep, had been used by them for several years. On doing a bit of enquiry It would appear that the company that owned this field is now dissolved. As I understand it, this land would have passed to the Scottish Gov. My question is, if I was to approach the Scot Gov, and it was theirs to sell, would it go to the open market or could it be sold to me for market value?  :fc:Or could I just go on using it as the previous owners did to keep a couple of sheep on?
Thanks

[Sbom]

Ask both questions!
Absolutely nothing to lose

[nimbusllama]

I wouldn't ask, I would keep using it as the previous occupiers did    why risk an answer that stops you using it altogether?  Keep your head down!

[clydesdaleclopper]

[member=132794]Scarlet.Dragon[/member] the 20 years use to acquire title only applies in English law. There is no law of adverse possession in Scots law.

[Womble]

I'm afraid I'm with nimbusllama - you're not doing anybody any harm by using it and if you stick your head above the parapet you might well lose access to it.

There is no law of adverse possession in Scots law.

Perhaps not, but there is something about inheriting permanent grazing rights (if not outright ownership?) if you use land for over a year. I'm told that's why grazing contracts are always for 364 days only. Does anybody know any more about this?

[alang]

Did some digging around and this was the only one in non-legal mumbo jumbo i understood

https://www.justanswer.com/scottish-law/3eof6-required-adverse-possession-land-buildings.html

http://www.andywightman.com/archives/479

[doganjo]

I'm afraid I'm with nimbusllama - you're not doing anybody any harm by using it and if you stick your head above the parapet you might well lose access to it.

There is no law of adverse possession in Scots law.

Perhaps not, but there is something about inheriting permanent grazing rights (if not outright ownership?) if you use land for over a year. I'm told that's why grazing contracts are always for 364 days only. Does anybody know any more about this?

Yes, we let our fields out to a farmer neighbour for 11 months for that very reason.  But I think the property can become owned - we knew of one chap who used a field owned by an old lady for 34 years, paid her no rent all that time, then when she died claimed it as his own and succeeded.  There may have been more to it than that but that is what we were told.

[Womble]

Womble - is this not to do with gaining tenancy rights rather than ownership?

Quite possibly, but if it gains you tenancy rights, that's basically posession, which as we all know is 9/10 of the law  .

One of our neighbours told me that 'Bob' over the other side of the hill had basically stolen the land he farms on years ago, by occupying it for a few years and then claiming (successfully I guess?) that it was now 'his'. I'd love to know where the law actually stands with regard to this, but I'm sure there's something in it (in Scotland at least), as Doganjo also alludes to.

[bj_cardiff]

I'd get some livestock into the field asap. Chances are that people are aware that the field doesn't belong to your property and that you've recently moved in.

There are 5 acres of land adjoining one of my fields that sold recently, however, on the auction the field was listed as 3.5 acres as when the bypass was built it cut through some fields and if they left 'bits' of fields behind. Any access to them would have to be from the bypass. So effectively their land locked, only accessible to the adjoining landowner.

If the 'unclaimed' 1.5 acres adjoined my fields I might of claimed it before the auction as I'd of had as much right to is as the person who brought it at the auction.

[landroverroy]

I too would be tempted to use any landlocked land that was unavailable to other people.
But that hardly gives you the same rights as someone who pays good money for the same at auction!