daf bit: Bava Batra 41
Oct. 1st, 2009 08:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cellioPreviously in this tractate we learned about adverse possession -- that
one who occupies another's property for three years without the owner
protesting is allowed to stay. In today's daf the mishna shows that how
the occupier makes his claim matters. If a man says to another: "what
are you doing on my land?" and he replies "no one has ever objected",
the occupier has no claim. On the other hand, if he says "you sold it
to me" (or "your father gave it to me" or some similar statement), he
has a claim. (41a)
I think, but do not know, that this is because making a false claim is a transgression that one would be more likely to shy away from -- so if he says "you sold it to me" he probably believes it. He has to have some basis for his occupation, in other words; he can't just squat and say "too bad you didn't catch me in time". That's my read, anyway, and this daf surely isn't the last word on the matter in any case.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-10-01 01:51 pm (UTC)