Delaware § 1102 - Perpetuating testimony of boundaries.

§ 1102. Perpetuating testimony of boundaries.

(a) Any person interested in perpetuating testimony respecting boundaries or landmarks may file a petition in the Court of Chancery representing the case, and naming the tenants and the owners of adjoining land, and praying for an order to take depositions to perpetuate testimony respecting the bounds. A summons shall be issued for summoning the tenants and owners to appear and show cause if they have any objection to such order. If any of them cannot be found, the Court may order proper service or publication of notice to them. If no sufficient objection is shown, the Court shall order that commission issue to 1 or more persons to take depositions on interrogatories filed after 10 days written notice of the filing thereof. Notice to an attorney or solicitor of record shall be sufficient notice to the party for whom the attorney or solicitor of record appears, and notice need not be given to any person not residing in the county where the lands lie.

(b) Each party may produce witnesses to be examined under the commission. The Court may suppress the depositions and make new orders, or it may order the depositions to be recorded, and they shall then be evidence against the parties to the petition and their privies in any suit or controversy in which the bounds which they concern shall come in question, in case of the death of the witnesses or inability to procure their attendance.

(c) If any person is not summoned or notified, the order for commission may be made without notice to that person; but that person shall not be affected by the proceedings.

(d) Each party shall bear the costs of the attendance and examination of witnesses produced by each such party; all the other costs shall be paid by the petitioner.

(e) The commissioners may employ a clerk. The commissioners and the clerk shall be sworn faithfully to perform their duty. A commission directed to several may be joint and several.

Code 1852, §§  988-992;  Code 1915, §  3617;  Code 1935, §  4166;  25 Del. C. 1953, §  1102;  70 Del. Laws, c. 186, §  1;  84 Del. Laws, c. 42, § 90;