PRESCRIPCIÓN ADQUISITIVA EXTRAORDINARIA DE INMUEBLES: SEGURIDAD JURÍDICA VERSUS PROTECCIÓN DEL POSEEDOR EN ECUADOR.

Abstract

Extraordinary acquisitive prescription allows ownership to be consolidated in favor of a person who has possessed real property for the statutory period, even against a registered title. Its application, however, places the protection of the possessor in tension with the legal certainty of the registered owner and third parties. The manuscript examines the institution’s conceptual and regulatory foundations, its requirements, the effects of the judgment, and the standards developed in Ecuadorian case law. The research adopts a qualitative, documentary, doctrinal, and case-law methodology based on the systematic analysis of constitutional, civil, procedural, and land-registration rules, as well as decisions of the Constitutional Court and the National Court of Justice. The results show that the current regime permits prescription against registered title but retains fragmented standards concerning the commencement and continuity of possession, the conversion of mere detention, standing as defendant, evidence, and precise identification of the property. Consequently, defective service, insufficient assessment of evidence, and harm to third parties may occur. The study concludes that a balanced application requires converging evidence, updated certificates, expert examination when discrepancies arise, and individualized reasoning through a uniform interpretive test that safeguards possessory protection and reliance on the land registry.