Acquiescence is a legal term used to describe the act of a person who knowingly stands by without raising any objection to infringement of his rights when someone else is unknowingly and honestly putting in his resources under the impression that the said rights actually belong to him. Consequently, the person whose right is being infringed cannot make a claim against the infringer anymore; or succeed in an injunction suit due to his conduct. The term is most generally, ‘permission given through silence’, or ‘passiveness’. In other words, acquiescence relates to inaction during the performance of an act.
The doctrine of Acquiescence, as well as the maxim in law, states that “silence shows consent”; it means, “He who does not deny, agrees”. Silence is acquiescence (also known as silent acquiescence, or acquiescence by silence) is a related doctrine that can mean, and have the legal effect, that when confronted with a wrong or an act that can be considered a tortuous act, where one’s silence may mean that one accepts or permits such acts without protest or claim thereby loses rights to a claim of any loss or damage.
Application of acquiescence and land ownership
Acquiescence is act of concurrence by adjoining property owners which resolves a boundary dispute or establishes a common boundary, where the definite or more accurate position of same has not or cannot be defined by survey. It is the tacit consent of one owner, by not interposing a formal objection, to what might be an encroachment by an adjoining property owner over a questionable boundary.
The common law doctrine of estoppel by acquiescence is applied when one party gives legal notice to a second party of a fact, or claim, and the second party fails to challenge or refute that claim within a reasonable time. The second party is said to have acquiesced to the claim, and is estopped from later challenging it, or making a counterclaim. The doctrine is similar to, and often applied with, estoppel by laches. Laches means “legal doctrine that a person who waits too long to bring a claim alleging a wrong shall not be permitted to seek an equitable remedy”. Acquiescence is not the same as laches, a failure to do what the law requires to protect one’s rights, under circumstances misleading or prejudicing the person being sued.
With regard to land boundary, Larson (2004) stated that the law of acquiescence is concerned with adjoining property owners, both of whom are mistaken about where the line between their properties is. Adjoining property owners may treat a boundary line, often a fence, as the property line. If the boundary line is not the recorded property line, this result in one property owner possessing what is actually the other property owner’s land. Regardless of the innocent nature of this mistake, the property owner whose land is being possessed by another would ordinarily have a cause of action against the other property owner to recover possession of the land. However, if the doctrine of acquiescence applies, the property owner of record will no longer be able to enforce his title, and the other property owner will gain title.
Furthermore, Larson (2004) gave the various ways through which acquiescence could occur. These are:
- Dispute and agreement – The neighbouring landowners have an actual disagreement as to the location of the boundary line, and ultimately agree upon a boundary line, which is not consistent with that set forth in their respective title deeds.
- Acquiescence for the statutory period – The neighbouring landowners treat a particular boundary line as the dividing line between their properties for the statutory period, even though it differs from the boundary line defined by their deeds. The statutory period (“statute of limitations”) for acquiescence can be quite long, and is often fifteen years or longer in duration.
- Acquiescence arising from intention to deed to a marked boundary – A grantor intends to deed property to a physical boundary but mistakenly uses an incorrect legal description in the actual deed.
References
Acquiescence. (n.d.). McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction. Retrieved February 15, 2014, from Answers.com Web site: http://www.answers.com/topic/acquiescence
Acquiescence. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from Answers.com Web site: http://www.answers.com/topic/ acquiescence
Acquiescence. (n.d.). Wikipedia. Retrieved February 15, 2015, from Answers.com Web site: http://www.answers.com/topic/acquiescence
American Heritage Dictionary acquiescence on Answers.com. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2004 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Larson, A. (2004). Acquiescence to a boundary line. Retrieved on February 15, 2011, from www.expertlaw.com/library/real_estate/acquiescence.html
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture acquiescence on Answers.com. McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Architecture and Construction Copyright © 2003 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.. Published by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
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Land Law
Land ownership
