Maeve had owned her cottage in Wicklow for fifteen years. It sat on a quiet country lane, peaceful and private — perfect for retirement. When she decided to sell, everything seemed straightforward until her solicitor uncovered something unexpected in the title documents. A right of way existed that allowed her neighbour to cross part of her land to reach the main road. The neighbour had been using the path for decades, but it was never formally registered. Maeve's previous owner had granted it verbally, a handshake agreement that worked fine in practice but created a legal tangle.
The problem became real when the buyer's solicitor asked for proof. Without a registered right of way, the buyer worried they were buying a problem — what if the neighbour changed their mind or demanded payment? What if there were disputes down the line? The sale hung in the balance. Maeve felt frustrated; the arrangement had worked for years, but the law requires things to be written down and recorded properly. She needed to fix this before the house could change hands.
Her solicitor worked with the neighbour and the Land Registry to register the right of way formally. It took a few weeks of paperwork and correspondence, but once it was done, everything changed. The right of way now appeared clearly in the official records, protecting both the neighbour's legal position and giving the buyer absolute certainty about what they were purchasing. The sale proceeded smoothly, and Maeve was able to move forward with her plans.