Stone v. CCXL, LLC

The common law elements of adverse possession are codified by ORS 105.620, requiring that claimants show that they and their predecessors in interest have maintained actual, open, notorious, exclusive, hostile, and continuous possession of the property for a period of at least 10 years.

Defendant appealed the trial court’s two-part judgment regarding a property dispute. Defendant assigns error to the trial court’s conclusion that the plaintiff adversely possessed the property. Defendant also assign error to the trial court’s ruling which construed the view easement unenforceable under the present circumstances. The Plaintiff argued that the 10-year period to evaluate adverse possession ends once the defendant files a counterclaim. In terms of the easement, Plaintiff argued that the enforcement of the easement would result in potential hardship and that would outweigh any benefit to the defendant. The common law elements of adverse possession are codified by ORS 105.620, requiring that claimants show that they and their predecessors in interest have maintained actual, open, notorious, exclusive, hostile, and continuous possession of the property for a period of at least 10 years. The Court found that the Plaintiff’s had conscious awareness that the land in question might belong to the Defendant. The Plaintiff would be unable to prove the honest belief element of adverse possession after June 30, 2014, the 10-year vesting period would have ended on that date. Additionally, the court found that the defendant would not experience any significant benefit from enforcing the easement because any resulting view would be of ore dense and tall trees on properties directly to the east of the Plaintiffs. The Court rule that the trial court did not err in determining that the Plaintiffs adversely possessed the disputed land, and they did not err in declaring that the view easement is unenforceable. Affirmed.