JOHN STACKMAN AND BEVERLY STACKMAN, Appellants, v. SUSAN POPE, POA FOR THE OWNERS, etc., Appellee., 28 So. 3d 131

Summary

The court found that only three of the 14 landowners filing suit averred that they had used the boat ramp for at least 20 years; none of them referenced use of the disputed property by predecessors in title; and none of their affidavits contained specific factual representations to support the claimed continuous use of the ramp. Further, appellants presented evidence of individuals, who had resided within view of, or regularly traveled by, the boat ramp, disputing the claim of appellees' continuous usage, particularly as appellants' supporting witnesses testified that the boat ramp was unusable for a significant period of time due to lack of maintenance. The court found that a party claiming a private prescriptive easement could only rely upon use of the subject property by himself or his predecessors in title. The evidence was clearly insufficient to meet the 20 year requirement for the majority of the property owners. As to the property owners who swore to actual and continuous use ...