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In reply to the discussion: The rabbi who is neighbor to Mark and Patricia McCloskey speaks out: 'They are bullies' [View all]pnwmom
(108,978 posts)the property, depending on how long the fence had been in place, by virtue of a doctrine called "adverse possession."
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/who-can-claim-property-based-adverse-possession-missouri.html
No single statute in Missouri dictates the elements that a trespasser must establish to prove adverse possession. Rather, the courts have established a variety of such factors over many decades of issuing decisions in individual cases. Courts look in particular at the nature of a trespassers possession and the length of time the person possesses the land.
A trespassers possession must be (i) hostile (against the right of the true owner and without permission); (ii) actual (exercising control over the property); (iii) exclusive (in the possession of the trespasser alone); (iv) open and notorious (using the property as the real owner would, without hiding his or her occupancy); and (v) continuous for the statutory period (which in ten years in Missouri, under Mo. Stat. Ann. § 516.010).
Imagine, for example, that Morgan and Ben are neighbors in St. Louis. Without a wall between their properties, Morgan plants trees on what is technically Bens land. Eventually, Morgan builds an entire porch there. Ben says nothing. The years passten years, in fact.