The Strip You Have Been Mowing
G.L. c. 260, § 21 — twenty years to recover land, and twenty of use for an easement
In Massachusetts, an action to recover land, or an entry on it, is made only within twenty years after the right first accrued, or within twenty years after the claimant or predecessors were seized or possessed of it. Where the right first accrued to an ancestor or predecessor, the twenty years run from that time.
Conservation land. The section does not bar an action by a nonprofit land conservation corporation or trust to recover land held for conservation, parks, recreation, water protection or wildlife protection.
Easements. No one acquires a right of way or other easement over another's land by adverse use unless the use continues uninterruptedly for twenty years.
The statute sets the time. What kind of possession counts beyond what the statute itself says comes from Massachusetts court decisions, which this page does not quote. Whether a particular strip of land has changed hands, and how to bring or answer an action over it, are questions for a licensed Massachusetts attorney.
Sources for this section (3)
- G.L. c. 260, § 21 — Recovery of land
- G.L. c. 260, § 22 — Accrual of right or title to land; limitation
- G.L. c. 187, § 2 — Easements by prescription
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Massachusetts attorney.