Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Common law definition

What does Common law mean? In practice, common law means judge‑made rules developed through case law and applied by courts when resolving disputes, filling gaps where no statute applies, and guiding statutory interpretation. It is not defined by legislation; it is a descriptive label for principles articulated in judicial decisions and followed under the doctrine of precedent (stare decisis). Key features include incremental development, binding effect according to the court hierarchy, and availability of judge‑made remedies. It encompasses both common law and (in England & Wales, Northern Ireland and Ireland) equitable doctrines, such as fiduciary duties, trusts and injunctions. In Scotland, the mixed system uses...

Easements by Prescription in England and Wales: Common Law, Lost Modern Grant and Prescription Act 1832—As of Right, Signage and Acquiescence, Interruption, Tenancies, Extent, and HM Land Registry

Published by a LexisNexis Property Disputes expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note examines how easements are acquired through prescription (long use) at common law, via the doctrine of lost modern grant, and by statute (pursuant to the Prescription Act 1832). It explains how a claimant can satisfy each route, the scope of the right obtained, and further matters to weigh where the dominant or the servient tenement is let on a tenancy at the relevant time by either party. It also briefly addresses the question of whether a long-used easement can be safeguarded by registration at HM Land Registry.

Presumed grant

An easement can be founded by long use:

at common law
under the lost modern grant doctrine (a well-known branch of common law prescription)
by statute (under the Prescription Act 1832 (PA 1832))

The law of prescription is a means of proving an easement, not of creating it. It ultimately rests on a presumed grant, i.e. that the right validly and properly existed before the claim is brought, but has since been lost or destroyed...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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