Mississippi Statewide Rule
Mississippi Squatter and Adverse Possession Rules
Key Facts
- Adverse possession period
- 10 years (section 15-1-13)
- Possession standard
- Actual, open, uninterrupted occupancy
- Result
- Full and complete title vests in occupant
- Fence/driveway defense
- Record notice with chancery clerk in 10 yrs
Summary
Mississippi requires 10 years of adverse possession to gain title. Miss. Code section 15-1-13 vests 'full and complete title' in anyone who openly, actually, and continuously occupies land for 10 years. A tenant in lawful possession is not a squatter and is removed through the eviction process, not adverse possession.
Ten (10) years' actual adverse possession by any person claiming to be the owner for that time of any land, uninterruptedly continued for ten (10) years by occupancy, descent, conveyance, or otherwise, in whatever way such occupancy may have commenced or continued, shall vest in every actual occupant or possessor of such land a full and complete title, saving to persons under the disability of minority or unsoundness of mind the right to sue within ten (10) years after the removal of such disability, as provided in Section 15-1-7. However, the saving in favor of persons under disability of unsoundness of mind shall never extend longer than thirty-one (31) years.
Full Breakdown
Mississippi's adverse-possession period is one of the shorter ones nationally. Miss. Code section 15-1-13(1) provides that 'ten (10) years' actual adverse possession by any person claiming to be the owner for that time of any land, uninterruptedly continued for ten (10) years by occupancy, descent, conveyance, or otherwise... shall vest in every actual occupant or possessor of such land a full and complete title.' The possession must be actual, open, and uninterrupted for the full decade. A disability of minority or unsound mind extends the owner's time to sue (never beyond 31 years). Subsection (2) lets a landowner defeat a fence-or-driveway claim by recording written notice with the chancery clerk within the 10 years. A holdover tenant is not a squatter and is removed through Justice Court eviction, not adverse possession.
Violations & Penalties
No statutory penalty against the possessor; the consequence is loss of the owner's title after 10 years. An owner defeats a claim by interrupting possession, suing in ejectment within 10 years, or (for a fence/driveway) recording the section 15-1-13(2) notice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long before a squatter can claim land in Mississippi?
Is a holdover tenant a squatter in Mississippi?
Sources
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