A 77-year-old pensioner has been evicted from her home in Hamworthy, Poole, Dorset, after losing a five-year legal battle with her neighbour over a one-foot strip of land. Jenny Field was met at her door by court bailiffs and told she was being evicted, with her home set to be sold to cover the legal costs of neighbour Pauline Clark.
The dispute began in 2020 when Clark erected a fence that Field claimed encroached 12 inches onto her property. Field hired contractors to remove the 6ft fence and reposition it, but Clark took her to court and won. Field was ordered to pay for the fence and two-thirds of Clark's legal fees, initially around £21,000.
Field refused to accept the ruling and repeatedly took the case back to court, causing legal fees to escalate to £113,000. Last September, a county court judge dismissed her final appeal, describing her fraud allegations against Clark as 'totally without merit'. Field was given a deadline of December 6 to pay the bill or face having her home sold.
After the deadline passed, Clark's solicitors successfully applied for an eviction notice. Judge Ross Fentem described the order as a 'draconian remedy' but said it was a last resort. Field, who has lived in the property since 2016, stuck a sign on her door claiming the eviction was invalid and has since been locked out.
Field said: 'They've changed the locks and won't let me back in. How can I be evicted for something I haven't done? I have nowhere else to go.' Clark's solicitor, Anna Curtis, said there was sufficient equity in Field's home for her to pay the debt and still buy a comfortable retirement property mortgage-free.
Field will be allowed to retrieve her belongings. The case highlights the severe consequences of protracted neighbour disputes, with both parties urged to find a resolution.
