Common Land - England and Wales

England and Wales

Common land, an English development, was used extensively under the law of England and Wales and in many former British colonies, for example in Ireland and the USA. All land in England and Wales is owned by someone, and in most cases that person has all the rights of exclusive ownership, to use the land as they wish. However, for common land the owner's rights are restricted, and other people (usually local residents) have some rights over the land. These people are known as commoners—the landowner retains other rights to the land, such as rights to minerals and large timber, and to any common rights left unexercised by the commoners. For example, there are 500 practising commoners in the New Forest, England. A famous example is the New Haven Green in New Haven, Connecticut. The North American colonies adopted the English laws in establishing their own commons.