Don Nissanka Jayawardane and Udugama Koralalage Soma Jayawardane vs Habaragamuralaage Janaka Wasantha Peiris Goonathilake – CA 123/99-2013

In the case between Habaragamuralaage Janaka Wasantha Peiris Goonathilake (Plaintiff-Respondent) and Don Nissanka Jayawardane and Udugama Koralalage Soma Jayawardane (Defendant-Appellants), the court addressed the entitlement to a declaration of title over specified allotments of land, subject to a pleaded trust, and the defendants’ claim of prescriptive title. It was held that the plaintiff’s title, supported by documentary evidence, stood unchallenged as the defendants waived their right to object to these documents. The defendants’ claim of prescriptive title was rejected due to a lack of any overt act indicating adverse possession, reaffirming the principle that the burden of proof under section 3 of the Prescription Ordinance lies with the party claiming prescriptive title. This decis