Batllia Court Awards Concordia Lands to Canillo in Encamp Border Dispute
Andorran court rules in favor of Canillo over Encamp in long-running territorial feud along Riu Massat, upholding historical markers and rejecting.
Key Points
- Court upholds historical creus de terme markers, placing yellow-marked area in Canillo.
- Rejects Encamp's riverbed boundary claim, separating 1672 Concordia pact from parish line.
- Dispute escalated in 2005 over cattle ditch; Encamp plans Superior Court appeal.
- Canillo welcomes ruling for legal clarity; Pic de Maià remains unresolved.
The Batllia court ruled on 8 January in favour of Canillo in the ongoing territorial dispute with Encamp over Concordia lands along the Riu Massat near Bordes d'Envalira, rejecting Encamp's claim that the parish boundary should follow the riverbed.
The 18-page judgment upholds the line defined by historical boundary markers—*creus de terme*—as confirmed in a 30 November 1999 Superior Court decision, invoking *res judicata* to bar further challenges. It cites agreements after the 1672 Concordia deed, including boundary inspections in 1771, 1807, and 1871, which set the divide from the Riu Valira through markers like creu 65 (Pleta de les Falconeres), creu 67 (Barraca del Marsal), creu 68 (under Orri de Rusca), creu 25 (Orri), and creu 26 (Sarrat) to Cap del Maià. The yellow-marked contested area now falls within Canillo parish.
The court separated the 1672 shared land pact from the parish boundary, noting the 1771 inspection resolved the latter. It highlighted confirmatory checks in 1807 and 1871, ruling out any unresolved co-ownership. "One thing is the agreed emprius [in the 1672 deed], and another very different is the parish dividing line," the ruling stated.
The feud dates to 2000, escalating in 2005 when Canillo dug a ditch near a border sign for its summer cattle drive. Encamp halted the work, claiming the area as its own, prompting rival boundary proposals from the Valira d’Orient-Massat confluence to Orri de Rusca. The case shifted through administrative channels, with two Constitutional Court annulments, before landing in civil jurisdiction.
Encamp has confirmed it will appeal to the Superior Court's civil chamber. Canillo received the decision "with institutional respect and satisfaction," seeing it as delivering "legal clarity on a prolonged issue." The parish added that the ruling offers "a defined framework to advance with legal certainty" while stressing its commitment to "good institutional relations, dialogue, and cooperation with Encamp" to "look forward, strengthen institutional cooperation, and focus on shared challenges facing citizens of both parishes."
The outcome follows a September 2024 settlement on the Pla de les Pedres gin but leaves the Pic de Maià area unresolved amid persistent historical border tensions.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: