On April 13, 2016, State Representative Pat Somerville introduced House Bill 5546 of 2016, which would modify the Revised Judicature Act of 1961, MCL 600.5801. Later that day, the House Bill was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Importantly, this major change in the law would increase the statutory period for adverse possession or acquiescence from 15 years to 30 years. Adverse possession is a method of obtaining title to land owned by someone else by possessing or occupying that land for a specific period of time.
Our office frequently handles adverse possession cases and/or advises our clients regarding adverse possession issues. Specifically, Kevin Hirzel, Esq. recently won an adverse possession case in the Michigan Court of Appeals. Mr. Hirzel was not only able to obtain land for our clients, but he also obtained a monetary award against the other side.
Given this potential change in the law, our law firm will be monitoring House Bill 5546 through the legislative process. If you have any questions regarding adverse possession or any other real estate issues, please contact our office.
Joe Wloszek is a Member of Hirzel Law, PLC where he focuses his practice on condominium and homeowner’s association law, commercial litigation, commercial real estate, large contractual disputes, and related real estate matters. Mr. Wloszek has been a Super Lawyers Rising Star in Real Estate Law from 2013-2018, an award given to only 2.5% of the attorneys in Michigan each year. He was also named a Top Lawyer in commercial law by DBusiness Magazine in 2014 and a Michigan Top Lawyer in real estate law by Michigan Top Lawyers in 2016. He is a Certified Real Estate Continuing Education Instructor through the State of Michigan and the past Chair of the Oakland County Bar Association Real Estate Committee. He can be reached at (248) 478-1800 or jwloszek@hirzellaw.com.