W.R. Arthur vs Mallika Guna thilaka – CA 478/96(F) -1996

The case between Mallika Gunathilaka (Plaintiff-Respondent) and W.R. Arthur (Defendant-Appellant) addressed the issue of entitlement to a declaration of title in a vindicatory action concerning a parcel of land. It was determined that the Plaintiff-Respondent had established ownership based on intestate inheritance, and the Defendant-Appellant, whose role as an ande (sharecrop) cultivator was uncontested, had failed to prove acquisition of prescriptive title. The findings established that the burden in a vindicatory action is solely on the plaintiff to prove both title and the fact of possession by the defendant, with no requirement for the defendant to establish prescriptive title to defeat the claim. The decision reaffirmed this principle and was predicated on a detailed evaluation of wi