What the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 refers to as the "line of Junction', is what you and your neighbour will probably call the boundary.
The purpose of a Line of Junction Notice which is also known as a Section 1 Notice, named after the section of the act in which it is mentioned it is used when a Building Owner wishes to build a new wall i.e for an extension either against the boundary (entirely on there own land) or with permission of the adjoining owner and this has to be express permission straddling the boundary.
While the right to build against the line of junction is the building owners they don not have the right to build over it a form a new party wall without express permission.
If as a building owner you wish to build a wall be that wholly on your land or straddling the boundary then the act dictates that you must serve a notice on your neighbour telling them of your intention and giving them 1 month notice, you can not start work before this 1 month notice period expires without permission of the adjoining owner(s).
Unlike with the other notices for works carried out under the Party Wall Act, an Adjoining owner can not jut appoint a surveyor on receiving a notice and if they choose not to reply there is no "deemed dispute" there has to be an actual dispute and the circumstances for these are rare when the wall is built entirely on the Building owners land but these can include a dispute about the "need" for projection footings or compensation for damages i.e to driveways, flowerbeds etc.
Another common dispute is where the wall is to be built, it is important to note that the Party Wall etc Act 1996 is not designed for boundary dispute resolution, but this can be a source of dispute especially when it comes to expense for building the wall for later use and other items including Section 8 Access.
You can view our DIY Line of Junction Notices Here
Should you need an expert to draft and serve a Line of Junction Notice or generally on party wall matters please don’t hesitate to contact us on 01843 808184 or email us at [email protected] or use our contact form on the website.
We cover Canterbury, Margate, Ramsgate, Whitstable, Herne Bay, Folkestone, Dover, Deal, Ash, Sandwich, Faversham, Sittingbourne and Other Kent Locations for all Our Party Wall Surveyor works
