Hawaii makes adverse possession very hard to claim. HRS § 657-31 bars an action to recover land after twenty years, but HRS § 657-31.5 limits any adverse-possession claim accruing after November 7, 1978 to parcels of five acres or less and bars claimants who asserted a similar claim within the prior twenty years.
HRS § 657-31 sets the baseline period: 'No person shall commence an action to recover possession of any lands, or make any entry thereon, unless within twenty years after the right to bring the action first accrued.' HRS § 657-31.5 then sharply restricts modern claims: a person may claim adverse possession only 'if the real property which is the subject of the action is five acres or less' and 'the person claiming by adverse possession has not asserted any similar claim, in good faith, within the past twenty years,' excluding claims made before November 7, 1978. A grandfather clause preserves claims completing twenty years before that date. The possessor must still prove open, notorious, hostile, continuous, and exclusive possession.
No specific statutory penalty. A squatter on a parcel larger than five acres (post-1978) or who recently made a similar claim cannot acquire title; the record owner may recover possession through an ejectment or quiet-title action within the 20-year window.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
Pearl City, HI
Pearl City residential pools must be enclosed under ROH Sec. 16-6.2, with companion standards at 16-7.9 covering public and condo pools at Pearl City Highlan...
Pearl City, HI
Pearl City retaining walls on the Pearl City Highlands and Manana hillsides fall under ROH 21-4.40, capping fill-bearing walls in required yards at 6 feet an...
Pearl City, HI
Pearl City fence materials follow the LUO fence definition in ROH 21-4.60, allowing wrought iron, wood, vinyl, plastic, and wire on post foundations in Waiau...
Pearl City, HI
Pearl City neighbor fence disputes apply ROH 21-4.30 yard setbacks with 21-4.60 height limits, since Hawaii has no dedicated spite fence statute for Waiau or...
Pearl City, HI
Public parks in Pearl City, including Pearl City District Park and Neal S. Blaisdell Park, are closed during posted night hours. Entering closed parks is pro...
Pearl City, HI
Pearl City follows the Hawaii state juvenile curfew under HRS 577-16. Children under 16 cannot be in public places between 10 pm and 4 am without a parent or...
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