implied right of way

[monty66]

we live in a street with at least 50% shared paths.our next door nieghbour has bought there house and taken away our path.we have been told that we have an implied right of way because we have used the path for nearly 10 yrs.next door only bought the house 5/6 yrs ago.what is an implied right of way,what can our local council do about it.we can not talk to the nieghbours,they have been warned about harrasment from the police and are just nieghbours from hell.(help)

[themas]

You mention the council. do you own your house, or is it a council house? If the latter, then you must talk to the council about what has happened and it is up to them to take whatever action is needed because it is their property.

If you own your house, you need to look at the title deeds to see what they say about the path, and where they show the boundary to be. The plans may not be clear but if there are common rights of way over shared paths or driveways this should be spelt out.

I think an implied (or prescriptive) right of way only comes about after 20 years unrestricted use but this could include use by previous owners or occupiers of your house.

Given the problems you obviously have with your neighbours, you may well have difficulty enforcing whatever rights you are able to establish. This could become a costly legal issue.