Last February we wrote about the (often fascinating) law of adverse possession — and the Supreme Court of Virginia's decision in Helms v. Manspile — here.Adverse possession is a common law cause of action, which means that it is rooted in judicial precedent rather than a statute passed by the General Assembly.
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Now comes an update: at the start of this year's General Assembly session, Donald McEachin (Democrat - Henrico) introduced Senate Bill 67, which would abolish the common law cause of action for adverse possession.
SB 67 would add to the Code of Virginia new Section 8.01-218.1, as follows:
SB 67 would add to the Code of Virginia new Section 8.01-218.1, as follows:
No action or defense shall lie or be maintained in the Commonwealth for adverse possession upon which the action or defense arose on or after July 1, 2010.The bill has been referred to the Senate's Courts of Justice Committee. You can track its progress on the Legislative Information System website, here.
