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Title & Boundary Dispute Law in Utah

There are times when neighbors will find themselves in a situation where how they've been using their land doesn't match up with the property boundaries that are on record. This can be a source of substantial conflict, as one might expect.

In these examples, neighbors usually have the option to resolve the dispute by themselves. If the neighbors are on amicable terms with each other, and the dispute is minor (for example, it only includes a difference of a couple feet), and enforcing the property lines would be a major inconvenience for one or both of the neighbors, they'll probably decide to just go on as they had before. This is a viable option, to be sure, but it's not a perfect one: if, sometime down the road, one of the neighbors wants to attempt to enforce the legal boundaries, they might find themselves unable to do so.

In these cases, what often happens is that the owner of the property which is truly larger than he initially believed (due to the property line not being where he thought it was) wants to make use of the additional property, and eject his neighbor from it. The other neighbor, on the other hand, will want to keep using the land as before, to avoid having his property shrink.

In addition to the boundary disputes mentioned above, land owners and buyers in Orem, Utah should also be aware of the possibility of a title dispute. Rather than being a disagreement over the exact boundaries between two pieces of land, a title dispute is a conflict over who actually owns an entire plot of land. Uncertainty over ownership of land can come up more often than you might think, and is most often caused by a buyer's failure to correctly record a deed, or the accidental loss or destruction of a deed. Sometimes, however, these disputes can be more dishonest in origin: on occasion, unscrupulous sellers of land will attempt to sell the same parcel to more than one person. Obviously, once you've sold land to one person, you can't sell the same land to someone else, as you no longer own it. These tricksters know this, but are attempting to gain a large amount of money through the multiple sales. Once this is done, they typically attempt to flee the state or country before the buyers discovery they've been duped. This leaves it up to the buyers to figure out amongst themselves who owns the land.

Possible Outcomes of Boundary and Title Disputes in Orem, Utah

Courts have many tools at their disposal to resolve boundary disputes. One way is to simply re-draw the property lines to reflect how the neighbors had been using the land before the discrepancy was discovered. This doesn't very change the position of either neighbor, and is sometimes the fairest result. This is most frequently done because the neighbors were both aware of the legal property lines, and that they differed from how they were using the land, and went on using the land anyway.

A court might do the opposite, and decide to enforce the property lines as they're drawn. This will always benefit one neighbor and hurt the other. A court will probably do this if one neighbor knew that his land was encroaching onto another person's property, and actively tried to hide that fact from his neighbor. Obviously, such bad behavior shouldn't be rewarded. Conversely, if the neighbor whose land was being encroached upon knew about the discrepancy, and did nothing about it, the court will probably change the property lines to reflect this prior use, to prevent that neighbor from being rewarded for "sitting on his rights."

When a title dispute comes up in Orem, Utah, the court has to apply some pretty complicated legal and equitable principles. These rules are sometimes fairly obscure, mainly because they can trace their origins back hundreds of years, to the common-law courts of England. However, a close examination of them reveals their basic goal: deciding ownership disputes based on longstanding conceptions of basic fairness.

Suffice to say, you'll want the help of an expert on this subject. In general, however, you should know that courts almost always rule in favor of the buyer who first recorded the deed, AND (not "or") didn't have knowledge of any prior conveyances. This protects the buyer who was most diligent in vindicating his own rights, and acted in good faith (obviously, a buyer who knew about a prior sale of the same land isn't acting honestly).

What Can A Orem, Utah Attorney Do?

Because of the high stakes, going it alone in a boundary or title dispute is rarely prudent. Therefore, it's almost always a good idea to get a good Orem, Utah real estate attorney to help you with such legal problems.

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Life in Orem

Orem, Utah is a city of about 93,000 people, located in Utah County.

Orem has nicknamed itself "Family City USA," and, living up to this moniker, it was named by Forbes Magazine as one of the 10 best places in the United States to raise a family. Orem, Utah was named after Martin C. Orem, a railroad magnate who operated a railroad in the area, and served as an early catalyst for its economic growth. Orem was formally incorporated as a town in 1919.

For most of its history, Orem was a small agricultural community. However, the years following World War Two saw booms in the nation's economy, population, and standard of living. This led to a huge amount of farm land giving way to residential developments.

Modernly, Orem, Utah's economy is largely based around Utah Valley University, which is the second-largest public university in Utah, with over 28,000 undergraduates. Orem is also home to many local businesses, as well as regional offices of larger corporations, creating a varied job market.

If you live in Orem, Utah and need an attorney, you're in luck. There's probably at least one Orem, Utah lawyer who can handle your particular legal issue, no matter what area of law is involved. If you need legal advice, you should contact an Orem, Utah lawyer immediately.

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Orem Boundary Dispute Lawyers and Orem Title Attorneys

Title & Boundary Dispute Law in Utah

Possible Outcomes of Boundary and Title Disputes in Orem, Utah