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This Practice Note covers the remedies available to landowners who find their property has been unlawfully occupied by a trespasser or squatter, issues that may arise as a result of trespass, potential remedies available to the landowner including physical repossession, while taking into account the Criminal Law Act 1977 (CLA 1977) and the exception in respect of displaced residential occupiers, use of police powers to arrest where appropriate, the impact of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO 2012) in criminalising residential squatting, injunctions and interim injunctions, damages including the negotiating damages model, mesne profits, exemplary damages and aggravated damages, anticipated damages, and res judicata defences.

The methods of regaining possession from a trespasser which are available to a landowner include:

1. •

   physical repossession

2. •

   arrest of the trespasser by the police for a criminal offence

3. •

   injunction

4. •

   possession claim (including a claim for an interim possession order)

In addition to the above remedies which are available for regaining possession, a landowner may also seek damages in respect of the trespass.