Section 1: Party walls and ditches

In towns and the countryside, any wall used to separate buildings up to the dwelling, or between courtyards and gardens, and even between enclosures in the fields, is presumed to be a party wall if there is no title or mark to the contrary.

There is a mark of non-citizenship when the top of the wall is straight and plumb with its facing on one side, and has a sloping plane on the other. When again there is only on one side or a coping or stone fillets and corbels which would have been put there when building the wall. In these cases, the wall is deemed to belong exclusively to the owner on…

The repair and reconstruction of the party wall shall be borne by all those entitled thereto, and in proportion to the right of each.

However, any co-owner of a party wall may be exempted from contributing to repairs and rebuilding by waiving the right of party ownership, provided that the party wall does not support a building belonging to him.

Any co-owner may build against a party wall, and have beams or joists placed in the full thickness of the wall, to within fifty-four millimetres, without prejudice to the neighbour’s right to have the beam rough-hewn down to half the wall, should he himself wish to set beams in the same place, or lean a chimney against it. .

Any co-owner may have the party wall raised; but he alone must pay the expense of the raising and the maintenance repairs above the height of the common fence; he alone must also pay the maintenance costs of the common part of the wall due to the raising and reimburse the neighbouring owner for all expenses made necessary to the latter by the raising.

If the party wall is not in a condition to support the heightening, the party wishing to heighten it must have it rebuilt in its entirety at his own expense, and the excess thickness must be taken on his side.

A neighbour who has not contributed to the heightening may acquire joint ownership of it by paying half the expense it has cost and the value of half the soil provided for the excess thickness, if any. The cost of the heightening is estimated at the date of acquisition, taking into account the condition of the heightened part of the wall.

Any owner adjoining a wall has the option of making it party wall in whole or in part, by reimbursing the master of the wall half the expense it has cost, or half the expense of the portion of the wall he wishes to make party wall and half the value of the ground on which the wall is built. The expenditure that the wall has cost is estimated at…

One of the neighbours may not make any indentation in the body of a party wall, or apply or support any work thereon without the consent of the other, or without having, on his refusal, caused to be settled by experts the means necessary to ensure that the new work will not be prejudicial to the rights of the other.