Warnakulasuriya Gertrute Tressila vs Ruwani Dilhara Rukmali Hathrusinghe – SC APPEAL 221/2016-2024

In the case between Samarappuli Mudiyanselage Somadasa (Plaintiff) and Warnakulasuriya Gertrute Tressila and Mihidukulasuriya Shenali Muthusilili Fernando (Defendants), the court addressed the issue of whether the Defendants possessed any right of way or servitudinal rights over the Plaintiff’s land. It was held that the Defendants did not establish any prescriptive right of way or servitude, and that the Plaintiff maintained exclusive ownership of the property. The court reaffirmed the principle that actio negatoria is available exclusively to those with soil rights to resist unproven servitudes, distinguishing it from actio confessoria. The judgment relied on evaluation of title, historical deed analysis, and established legal distinctions regarding servitudinal claims, emphasizing that