Opinion ID: 1982246
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: The Precedents Applied

Text: Although the trial judge did not explicitly discuss the elements of adverse possession, we think that there is a substantial basis in the evidence and in the applicable law for his finding that title passed to Ms. Piggot no later than in 1950. According to the stipulated evidence, the intrusion had by that time existed for at least fifteen years. It was continuous, open and notorious. Under District of Columbia law, as well as the majority rule elsewhere, it matters not whether the initial intrusion was intentional or the result of a mistake as to the boundary line. The construction of the wall was an exercise of dominion. The judge could reasonably conclude that, as of 1950, Ms. Tippett's predecessor in title owned the portion of the easement occupied by the wall by adverse possession. [9] Mr. Smith seeks to distinguish Neale and Brumbaugh upon the ground that the wall built by Ms. Tippett's predecessor was a less substantial improvement than those constructed by the claimants in the earlier cases. We think, however, that the trial judge could reasonably find, as he implicitly did, that the erection of the wall conveyed the clear message that Ms. Piggot intended to possess as her own, and no one else's, the property on which it stood. See 7 POWELL, supra, § 1013(2) at 91-17.