Schultz v. Dew
Supreme Court of South Dakota
564 N.W.2d 320 (1997)
The plaintiffs owned residential property adjoining land owned by the Dews (defendants) and, believing a strip of land containing a driveway and grassy border to be their own, gravel-topped and later paved the driveway, mowed the grass, and planted trees along it over the years. When the plaintiffs decided to sell in 1993, the Dews asserted ownership of that strip, and the plaintiffs sued for adverse possession; the trial court granted the plaintiffs summary judgment, and the Dews appealed.
Whether, under South Dakota law, a person claiming adverse possession over property must prove he possessed or occupied the land either by protecting it with a substantial enclosure or by cultivating or improving it.