Document downloads - Party walls disputes
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Suggested line of junction notice
A line of junction notice describes the intention to construct a wall either astride or abutting a boundary, which is not presently built upon, or is built upon only to the extent of a simple boundary wall wholly on one party's land. (Minimum notice period is one month).
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Suggested notice of adjacent excavation
The provisions of section 6 of the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (the Act) are designed to try to avoid the careless destabilising of the foundations to buildings and structures that are in close proximity to a development site. If works will involve excavation of any type (whether or not for foundations), and that excavation falls within certain dimensional parameters in relation to an adjoining building or structure, then notices must be served.
This document is a sample notice of adjacent excavation that can be issued in such circumstances. -
Suggested party structure notice
A party structure notice, under section 3 of the Party Wall etc. Act 1996, describes the intention to exercise rights, conferred under section 2, to undertake certain works to a party structure and certain limited works to an adjoining owner's independent building (minimum notice period is two months). The required notices must be served on all adjoining owners with an interest in the relevant structures or land.
This document is a sample template for such a notice. -
Party wall legislation and procedure
Published July 2019
Effective from 1 October 2019
Reissued May 2023
This standard provides guidance for RICS members who accept instructions for which the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 (the Act) may be relevant. It also describes the circumstances in which the Act will apply, as well as the procedures to be followed where it does.
The new 7th edition, which is effective from 1 December 2019, contains an in-depth and important section on professional conduct. While a party wall surveyor is minimally required to act only in accordance with their statutory obligations, an RICS member is expected to meet RICS expectations of professional and ethical behaviour commensurate with their membership, alongside their duty to conform to the Act.
The appendices contain various draft letters and draft notices and a revised and updated suggested draft award. -
Boundaries: procedures for boundary identification, demarcation and dispute resolution
Published February 2021
Effective from 1 May 2021
Reissued October 2022
Disputes about boundaries, and related neighbour disputes, are never far from the news and have been increasing steadily during the COVID-19 period in England and Wales. Boundary disputes can be costly, traumatic and time-consuming for all concerned; they can end up in expensive legal cases, leave a lingering mistrust and ill-feeling between neighbours, result in delayed development and additional costs, and cause confusion between professionals. They never fail to light up the letter pages of the tabloids, and the constituency postbags of MPs.
It is critical that RICS members, and other professionals working within this sector, are up to date with the latest best practice advice and guidance. This new 4th edition encompasses all that was best from the seminal 3rd edition, with a new emphasis on mediation, and has been reformatted and edited to include several new and expanded sections.
This document was reissued in October 2022 as a professional standard. It had previously been published in February 2021 as a guidance note. The regulatory requirements remain the same and no material changes have been made to the document. -
Party walls line of junction notice acknowledgment
This letter acknowledges a line of junction notice and agrees upon the terms that the notice is under.