Legal Definitions - doctrine of practical location

The doctrine of practical location is a legal principle that allows property owners to establish a binding boundary line between their properties through long-standing mutual agreement and recognition, even if that agreed-upon line differs from the official legal description or a later survey. This doctrine is often applied when the true boundary is uncertain or disputed, and neighbors have, for a significant period, treated a particular line as their shared property division. It emphasizes the practical, on-the-ground understanding and acceptance of a boundary over strict adherence to potentially ambiguous or difficult-to-locate survey lines.

For this doctrine to apply, there must typically be:

• Uncertainty or a dispute regarding the true boundary line.
• An agreement (either express or implied by conduct) between adjacent landowners on a specific line as their boundary.
• Long-term acquiescence or recognition of that agreed-upon line by both parties and their predecessors in title.
• Often, the presence of a physical marker (like a fence, wall, or natural feature) that has been treated as the boundary.

Here are some examples:

• Example 1: Residential Fence Line

  Imagine two suburban neighbors, Ms. Rodriguez and Mr. Lee, whose properties were originally surveyed many decades ago. When they both bought their homes, there was an old wooden fence between their backyards. For 35 years, both Ms. Rodriguez and Mr. Lee, and their predecessors in title, have consistently maintained and treated this fence as the dividing line for their properties, mowing up to it, planting gardens along it, and never disputing its location. Years later, a new survey reveals that the fence is actually one foot onto Ms. Rodriguez's property according to the original deed.

  How this illustrates the doctrine: Despite the new survey showing a discrepancy, the doctrine of practical location might prevent Ms. Rodriguez from claiming that one foot of land. The long-standing mutual agreement (implied by their actions and lack of dispute over 35 years) to treat the fence as the boundary, coupled with their practical recognition and use of that line, could legally establish the fence as the true property boundary, overriding the newer survey.

• Example 2: Rural Creek as a Boundary

  Consider two large rural properties, one owned by the Chen family and the other by the Patel family. For over 60 years, a winding creek has been informally understood and accepted by both families, and previous owners, as the boundary between their expansive lands. They have always grazed their livestock up to the creek, built small bridges across it for shared access, and never questioned its role as the dividing line. A recent land development project requires a precise survey, which indicates that the creek actually meanders slightly onto the Patel property in some places and onto the Chen property in others, deviating from the official metes and bounds description.

  How this illustrates the doctrine: Here, the creek serves as the "practical location" of the boundary. The long-term, undisputed recognition and use of the creek by both families as their property line, despite any minor deviations from the original survey, could lead a court to uphold the creek as the legal boundary under the doctrine of practical location. This prioritizes the established, practical understanding over the technicalities of the original, potentially difficult-to-interpret, survey.

• Example 3: Shared Commercial Driveway

  Two commercial buildings in a historic downtown area share a narrow alleyway that has been used as a common driveway for deliveries and access to rear entrances for over 50 years. The owners of both buildings, and all previous owners, have always understood and respected the center line of this alley as the boundary between their respective properties. They have jointly maintained the alley and never disputed the dividing line. A new owner of one building decides to build an addition and commissions a survey, which shows that the official deed boundary actually runs a few feet into what has always been considered the other building's side of the alley.

  How this illustrates the doctrine: The shared alleyway's center line, established through decades of mutual use, maintenance, and recognition by all parties as the boundary, represents a practical location. Even if the new survey indicates a different legal description, the doctrine of practical location could be invoked to maintain the center of the alley as the legal boundary due to the long-standing, undisputed agreement and practical establishment of that line by the property owners.