Legal Question in Real Estate Law in New York
property line dispute
My neighbors surveyor staked out .8 of an acre of my land that I purchased in 1993. The surveyor did not research any adjoining properties; he has admitted that he did no research and used an unfiled map he did in 1990, also with no research. He refuses to correct the survey and my neighbor is claiming MY land. My neighbor purchased his land in 1994 without a survey.
This is probably going to litigation to reclaim my land. My question is - can I sue the surveyor to recover my cost? (stress,anxiety,malpractice) Thank you.
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: property line dispute
Speaking solely about the surveyor, the question you should ask yourself is, "if the surveyor did everything right, would that have stopped the boundary dispute with your neighbor?" Probably not.
I would attempt to shame the surveyor into doing a proper job, using that information in the upcomming boundary dispute with your neighbor.
Mike.
Re: property line dispute
You can certainly sue anyone for anything. This does not mean, however, that your suit will be successful.
You should contact a local attorney to discuss this matter in more detail. Malpractice is not easy to prove. What the surveyor did may be malpractice, but without more details, and an expert opinion from another surveyor, I can't be sure.
Re: property line dispute
You should immediately commence litigation
against your neighbor for ejectment, namely,
removal from your land. A claim of
adverse possession does not become effective
until after a ten year period, so this
lawsuit should be successful
Your lawsuit against the surveyor has time
limit problems. There is a 3 year
statute of limitations for negligence and
6 years for contract breaches. Both seem
to run, and your luck may have also run
out on this.
Do get on the property issue, though.