Boundary disputes

The Alina Szilaghi law office in Cluj-Napoca has experience in resolving, both in court and amicably, disputes between owners of neighbouring plots about the boundary between them.

The boundary action (acțiune în grănițuire): the claimant asks the court to determine, by visible markers, the extent of the two neighbouring plots. Its main features are:

• It is an in rem, petitory, immovable and declaratory action that is not subject to a limitation period.
• It can be brought primarily by the owner of the plot, and by anyone with a real right over it — such as the holder of a superficies or usufruct, or of a right to use state-owned land — who seeks to have their plot separated from the neighbouring one; where the action also involves recovering part of the land, only the owner has standing.
• It is not available between co-owners, and if the plot is the spouses’ joint property, both spouses must bring the action.
• Its object is to mark the boundary between the plots or, as the case may be, to move the boundary line and order the respondent to return land held without right; in the first case the evidence need only show the true course of the boundary, to be marked by visible signs, without proof of the claimant’s ownership; the burden of proof lies on both parties, since each acts as both claimant and respondent; and because it is a question of fact, any type of evidence may be used to establish the boundary.
• It produces effects only as to the separation of the parties’ plots, not as to the real right itself, so either party may later bring an action for recovery of a specific area without being met by res judicata.
• The costs of marking the boundary set by the court are borne equally by both parties. If the boundary was fixed by agreement, the parties can challenge it by an action for annulment.