ASSESSMENT BRIEF for LAW272 Land Law: Assessment 2 - Coursework

Submission deadline: by 5pm on Monday 8th January 2024

Submission method: Online via LAW272 Canvas site (assignments).

Word Limit: 3000. Please note this is a strict word limit. Penalties will apply for submitting
work that exceeds or is below the word limit in accordance with the word limit regulations.

Grading information: This coursework is worth 75% of your overall grade. The other 25% is
made up from your MCQ examination (assessment 1).

Read the following information carefully:

Question;
Judith Eastern is the registered freehold proprietor of Kestrel Mansion and a smaller, self-
contained residential unit known as Merlin Cottage. She has owned the separate freehold
legal estate of both since 1989. A plan (plan number 1) is provided with this assessment
brief showing the general layout of the estate and the title numbers.

There are substantial gardens and a tennis court within the grounds of Kestrel Mansion.
There is a large brick built ‘shed’ located within an overgrown and wooded area on the
estate. This shed has, four walls, a roof, two glazed windows and a door. This shed had
historically been used by Judith to store some old furniture, a lawnmower and other small
gardening materials. By her own admission, Judith had not used the shed herself for many
years.

In January 1990 Judith decided to sell Merlin Cottage to Mr and Mrs Smith, transferring to
them the freehold legal estate in the property. The shed was accessible by the Smiths from
their property as there is no physical boundary line separating the two estates. The Smiths
did not realise that this shed was not on part of the land they owned. They started to use
the shed to store some of their own items and also added a lock to the door. They moved
Judith’s items outside to the back of the shed.

In June 1990 a relative of the Smiths, Toby; found himself homeless and whilst they did not
have a spare room in their own house as they were busy renovating, the Smiths suggested
that he could stay in the shed whilst he “sorted himself out”.
Toby found that the shed was actually very comfortable and more like a very small cottage.
He had room for a bed, armchair, wardrobe and a table. After a couple of weeks, he asks the
Smiths if he could connect an electricity source to the shed from their supply, which they
agree to. He does not pay them for this as the cost was minimal and the Smiths felt
somewhat ashamed that they had made him live in the shed. However, Toby is very happy
with this arrangement and then buys a small TV, kettle and a tabletop cooker and an
undercounter fridge. He was very self-sufficient in the shed and was in no hurry to move
out.

By April 1991 Toby had built a small vegetable patch on the grounds surrounding the shed
and regularly tends the overgrown trees and plants in the wooded area. He also fells any
dying or storm damaged trees and cuts the same to be used as firewood. At this time Judith
becomes aware of Toby using the shed in this way but does not object to this and says he
can ‘stay as long as he wants’. She regularly accepts gifts of homegrown vegetables from
him and used the wood for her log burning fire in the mansion.

In November 1992 he builds a 6ft high fence around the shed as shown on the plan.

In March 2010 Judith sold Kestrel Mansion to Amina. Amina does not acknowledge Toby’s
existence but was informed by Judith that someone was using the shed temporarily. She
simply leaves him ‘to it’ and does not speak to Toby at all, nor does she ever visit or use the
wooded area.

It is now November 2023 and Amina wishes to develop the land. She has approached Toby
to ask him to stop using the shed as it is going to be demolished as she is completely
redeveloping the wooded area to build a large spa complex on the grounds.

Toby refuses to move out and yesterday Amina threatened Toby and said she will do
whatever she can to ‘get him off her land’.

Advise Toby.

Your tasks are as follows:

1. Prepare a research file note and within this you must:

a. Set out the legal principles to determine whether Toby has adverse possession
of the shed. You must demonstrate clearly how you have reached your
conclusion.
b. What the likely remedies / action will be.
c. Support your answer with relevant case law and statute.
 2. Prepare a letter of advice to Toby to set out your findings in a clear, client friendly
way.

Additional information

Solicitor’s details:

• Trainee solicitor’s name: Please use your own name or student number.
• Solicitor’s address: 579 Station Road, Rowlands Gill, Tyne and Wear, NE39 2RT.
• Solicitor’s telephone number: 01207457890
• Solicitor’s email address: oaktreelaw@admin.ac.uk
• Solicitor’s reference number: TS.A1.Toby.2023/4
• DX address: not applicable

Toby’s details:

• Telephone number: 07980746734

• Email address: tobyshed@gmail.com
• Home address: all correspondence c/o Merlin Cottage, Rowlands Gill, NE39 1ER

Dates required for assessed tasks

For ease, please date all documents submitted for the assessment using the date: 8 th
January 2024 (the deadline for the submission of the assessment). NOT the date that you
prepare or submit it, if that is an earlier date.

Assessed tasks to submit for LAW272 Assessment 2: Coursework

Task 1: Draft a research file note to your supervising solicitor (Toni Spencer) outlining the
rules relating to adverse possession, then a final summary of your overall advice on each
legal issue identified. Remember, it is not enough to simply explain the rules in this research
note, I need to know HOW they apply to your particular case facts. This research file note
must be referenced, and you must use the OSCOLA referencing style.

Task 2: Draft a letter of advice to the client. The letter should not be drafted as a client care
letter. The letter must be presented in a way to provide the client with the advice that has
been requested.
You should not reference the letter in any way and you should ensure the letter is drafted in
an appropriate and professional format/manner. You will be provided with a draft
letterhead to use for this task, which should be fully completed using all of the additional
information you have been given.

Additional submission guidance/requirements

• You must submit both the letter and the research file note on or before the
submission deadline.
• Include a front cover sheet for the assessment
• You MUST submit your work as a PDF document. This is extremely important as
word documents will not format correctly on Canvas and some of your work may
not be displayed on the submission if they are submitted as word documents.
• You must include a table of cases, a table of statutes and a bibliography. These
should include all the sources used in your work.
• Assessment 2 is awarded one single overall mark. The assessment rubric details the
various factors that are taken into account when marking this assessment.
• The University’s Academic Misconduct Policy applies to this assessment. When you
submit your LAW272 assessment submission to the link on the LAW272 Canvas site,
you are confirming that the submission is your own work. Ensure that you
understand the Academic Misconduct Policy, particularly the different ways that you
might commit an academic misconduct offence. For example, did you know that it is
possible to commit an academic negligence offence by failing to properly reference
work or by failing to include sufficient amounts of your own narrative/work (e.g. by
relying too heavily on content taken from textbooks and the internet – which
includes all forms of AI such as ChatGPT) It is also possible to commit academic
misconduct by working with other students to complete the assessments or by
sharing materials electronically (e.g. group chats). If you have any doubt about what
you can/cannot do, contact a member of the law team who will be able to advise
you.
 • Remember to always follow the submission instructions and assessment information
provided by your module leader. If you need clarification on something (for example,
the time the assessment needs to be submitted) and you can’t find the answer in the
assessment brief, module handbook or LAW272 Canvas site, then ask your module
leader! Students are naturally keen to help each other if they can but, unfortunately,
the advice/answers that they give to other students are often incorrect (although it
normally well-intentioned and/or a genuinely held belief). Always consult your
module guide, assessment brief(s) and Canvas site first and then, in the unlikely
event that doesn’t give you the answer you were looking for, contact your module
leader who will be happy to help you!

Assessment 1 Rubric

Module Learning Outcomes

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the functions of the rules of common law and

statute, and common law and equity
2. Demonstrate an understanding of how rights and interests in land are acquired,
protected and transferred
3. Critically analyse legal materials and arguments relating to land law
4. Use appropriate legal terminology specific to land law

Criterion Mapping to learning outcomes

(LOs)
Information presented and explained in a This criterion is linked to LO’s 2
comprehensible manner and 4

Accurate explanation of the relevant law This criterion is linked to LOs 1, 2,

3 and 4

Correct application of legal principles to the scenario This criterion is linked to LOs 1, 2,
facts and 4

Work presented in an appropriate, professional This criterion is linked to LO 4

format/manner

Appropriate use of OSCOLA referencing This criterion is linked to a LOs 1,

2 and 4
Appropriate range of legal research undertaken This criterion is linked to a LO’s 1,
2 and 3

Accurate understanding of the law demonstrated This criterion is linked to a LOs 1,

2, 3 and 4
 Feedback on LAW272 Assessment 1

Feedback on this assessment will be provided online via the LAW272 Canvas site. Your
online submission will be marked by Toni Spencer. Samples of work will also be moderated
by another member of the law team and by an external examiner. This ensures fair and
consistent marking across the cohort and across institutions. You will receive your mark and
feedback online on or before 19 th February 2024. Marks/feedback will not be provided by
telephone or email. The feedback you receive will relate directly to the assessment rubric
included in this assessment brief.

The feedback will identify the extent to which you met each of the marking criterion and
identify areas where there was scope for improvement. Ensure you read your feedback
carefully! Not only will it help you to understand why you received the grade you did, it will
also help you to improve your performance in other assessments (even if you did very
well!).

If you require any additional feedback, please don’t hesitate to let me know! I’m always
happy to provide one-to-one meetings to help you to understand what you did well and
what you could have done better.

Referred/Deferred Assessment instructions

If you are required to submit referred/deferred coursework for this module, please note the
following information:

 The ref/def assessment is the same assessment detailed in this assessment brief.
Read the instructions carefully and follow the guidance contained in this document
(save, of course, for the submission deadlines!). You will complete the same
assessment as you did (or would have done) for the first sit in 2023/24.
 Please submit the ref/def assessments via the ‘ref/def assessment 2’ link on the
LAW272 Canvas site.
 The submission date for ref/def submission deadline will be published via Canvas
Announcements later in the academic year. The submission deadline will be during
semester 2 of 23/24.
 If you are referred in LAW272 assessment 2 your ref/def submission mark will be
capped at 40%. You will be considered to be referred in assessment 2 if you:

o were awarded a fail mark (anything below 40%) when you attempted the first
submission
o failed to submit the work at the first attempt but did not successfully apply
for extenuating circumstances to defer the assessment

 If you are deferred in LAW272 assessment 2 (because you successfully submitted

an application for extenuating circumstances for assessment 1) your def/def
work will not be capped at 40%.

[End of Assessment brief]