Copyright (c) 2026 Revista Científica Guacamaya
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This article analyzes the evolution of adverse possession in the Republic of Panama through a longitudinal study covering twenty-five years of regulatory and procedural transformations. Based on empirical research conducted in 2001 with 50 key informants, the results are contrasted with the legal reality of the year 2026, characterized by the institutionalization of ANATI and the enforcement of the Agrarian Code. The study reveals a critical transition from a “witness-based justice” model, grounded in social notoriety and material possession, toward a "expert-based justice" paradigm, where georeferenced technical validation prevails over factual reality. Findings indicate that while modernization has increased static legal certainty, it has erected economic barriers that hinder access to formal property for the most vulnerable sectors. The study concludes that the social function of property has shifted from a constitutional postulate to a rigorous productivity filter, exacerbating the gap between registry legality and informal possession in the Panamanian context.
Este obra está bajo una licencia de Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial-CompartirIgual 4.0 Internacional.
