Neighbors Adverse Possession Claim

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Im selling my house and we got the land surveyed. Ended up taking a good portion of my neighbor's yard that is actually mine. I got served a cease and desist letter from his lawyer. But he is not planning on taking me to court because he said directly that I need to be the one to take him to court. He is claiming it is his by adverse possession. He has been harrassing my tenants and moving the stakes that the surveyor has placed, parked a trailor on my side of the stakes. I have spoke with a lawyer and his advice is to wait it out...but others say not to wait...do i take him to court or what do i do?
Have you documented the instances of harassment and the moving of the surveyor's stakes? This could be crucial evidence in your case.

In Illinois, adverse possession requires 20 years of continuous, hostile, open, and notorious possession.
Yes. The tenants have him moving the stakes on their outdoor camera footage. And him putting the trailor in the yard. When I bought the house, there was a chain link fence on two sides of the yard and a privacy fence on the other side of the yard that is between me and the neighbors. I have taken the fence down and replaced it all with privacy fence. I never got a land survey done in the time I lived in the house because I wouldn't have questioned a property line because who would have put a fence where their line isn't. And that fence has been there more than 20 years but the land hasn't been surveyed since the '70s
Did your neighbor ever explicitly claim the disputed land as his own before the survey was done?

In Illinois, for adverse possession:
- The possession must be hostile and against the right of the true owner.
- The possession must be open, notorious, and visible.
- The possession must be continuous and uninterrupted for 20 years.
No. I put a new fence in but he never said a word about it. He recently added a fence from his house and connected it to mine but in the 10 years ive owned it he has never had a fence up until a year or * ago
Did your neighbor ever use the disputed land continuously for 20 years? In Illinois, adverse possession requires 20 years of continuous use.
I have only owned it for 10 years
Did your neighbor claim to have used the disputed land continuously before you owned the property?
He said hes maintained it for 35 years and never had a dispute with any other owners
Did he provide any proof to support his claim of maintaining the land for 35 years?
No
What actions have you taken since receiving the cease and desist letter?
Had a consultation with a lawyer but he advised me to wait 6 months and see if he takes me to court and then take fence in backyard down between the houses and then slowly take control of it...i dont want this to be a 6 year process. Another lawyer said that whichever lawyer i chose, should write a letter to his lawyer to try amd resolve it but the lawyer wanting me to wait said that we shouldnt write a letter
What evidence do you have to prove that the disputed land is yours according to the recent survey?
I got a land surveyor to come out and find my pins. My deed shows my land size. What other evidence is there
Do you have any historical records or documents that show the original boundaries of your property? These could include old maps, aerial photographs, or previous deeds.
I only have the aerial photgraphs with my land line on it that the surveyor gave me. He went back thru records and it showed it hasnt been surveyed since the original pins were put in
What is the exact location of your property? This will help me provide you with the contact details of the nearest court in case you decide to pursue legal action.
* s 7th ave canton il *
The nearest court to you is the Fulton County Circuit Court. Their contact details are:

Fulton County Circuit Court
* N. Main St.
Lewistown, IL *
Phone: (*) *-*
Yes i have tried contacting the courthouse on what i can do and their only advice was to get a lawyer/attorney.
What is the nature of the cease and desist letter you received? It's important to understand the specific claims being made against you.
He knew that the buyers of my house are wanting to relocate the fence to make the yard bigger and to build a garage
What does the cease and desist letter specifically ask you to stop doing?
Cease and desist any further alterations to the property in dispute. He intends on injecting me from his property. Any alterations made will be corrected at my expense and if additional Court action is necessary due to my continued alterations to the property they will be asking the court to award my neighbor any court costs and attorney fees and cured based upon my continued actions
What actions have you taken in response to the cease and desist letter?

In Illinois, adverse possession requires 20 years of continuous, hostile, open, and notorious possession. If your neighbor cannot prove this, you may have a case.