Court grants Roxborough family right of access through neighbour’s land

Justice Frank Seepersad. -

FOUR relatives have been granted legal rights to access their family’s land in Roxborough through a neighboring property after the High Court ruled in their favour in their lawsuit against their neighbour on August 25.

Justice Frank Seepersad declared that Maudlyn London, Ava London, Karmaria London, and Karina London are entitled to a right of way across land owned by Peaches Douglas. The ruling followed a year-long dispute over whether the sisters had legally acquired access to their landlocked property.

The judge found that the Londons and their licensees had openly used the strip of land, measuring approximately 56 feet long and 2.5 meters wide, for decades as their sole practical access route to the main road. Seepersad determined that the alternative path proposed by Douglas was “treacherous at best” and “virtually impossible to traverse, especially during the rainy season.”

Douglas, who inherited the land from her late father Barnis Douglas, argued that the Londons’ access was never a legal right and that her father had previously won a trespass case in 1991. She claimed the Londons had ceased using the strip for years and relied on other routes.

However, after reviewing witness testimony, court documents, and conducting a site visit, Seepersad found the Londons’ evidence more credible. He ruled that their continuous use of the strip of land since at least 1991 satisfied the legal requirements to establish an easement by prescription.

“The court is of the view, and finds as a fact, that the claimants have been using the defendant’s strip of land as a right of way to get to and from their property for over 20 years,” Seepersad held.

“Having seen the claimants’ property, it is clear that same is land-locked. This is not an unusual circumstance in Tobago given the island’s topography. With the exception of Lowlands, significant portions of the island’s houses are constructed on hillsides and slopes and as a result, access routes can be limited.

“This, notwithstanding, the court takes judicial notice of the fact that Tobagonians have a strong and admirable sense of community as is evidenced by their unique harvest culture and it is possible that there is often a sense of cooperation and neighbourly goodwill which results in families helping and accommodating each other.

“Unfortunately, that spirit of good and neighbourly conduct is absent in this case,” the judge said.

The court declared that the Londons, their servants, and licensees are now legally entitled to pass on foot or by vehicle across the disputed strip of land, ensuring permanent access to their Roxborough property.

In deciding the case, the judge considered cases on mandatory requirements for establishing an easement and whether the Londons’s statement of case sufficiently set out all the material particulars to support their claim, ruling that it did and Douglas “knew the case she had to meet.”

Samantha Lawson represented the Londons while Abayomi Ajene and Chenise Sylvan represented Douglas.