A High Court hearing to ban hunt sabateurs from almost every piece of countryside in West Sussex starts tomorrow. More than 80 landowners are backing the Crawley and Horsham Hunt action against the West Sussex Wildlife Protection Group and its two main organisers, Simon and Jaine Wilde, from Bognor.

The aim is to win a common law injunction against trespassing and harassment by activists under the Protection and Harassment Act 1997.

If an injunction is awarded, the activists will be banned from 10,000 acres of land, nearly the whole of the county, except for large public estates, footpaths and public highways.

It is the first time such a large group of farmers and landowners has joined forces with a hunt to tackle animal rights protesters.

The case is being partly funded by the Countryside Alliance and the Masters of Foxhounds Association.

The biggest share is coming from the Crawley and Horsham Hunt and the landowners, who claimed to have logged 269 incidents of trespass and harassment caused by the Wildes and their associates during the past two years over about 10,000 acres of land.

The ban on hunting was introduced in February 2005 and since then 184 foxhound packs have adapted to legal forms of the sport by following a false scent, hunting with a bird of prey or organising hound exercise trails, activities allowed under the Hunting Act.

The hunt is seeking an injunction to take effect from September 1.

Anyone in breach of such an injunction is liable to be prosecuted for contempt of court and police have the power of arrest in the event of any breaches.

At present, every time that the hunt goes out police are informed that it is involved in illegal practices but no action has been taken by officers.

Anthony Sandeman, 51, a farmer and a joint master of the hunt, from Bolney, said they were not aiming to stop legitimate monitoring of the hunt from public highways and rights of way.

He said some of the action taken by protestors was intimidating and the aim was to ban the filming of hunt supporters, children and old people who follow on foot.

The lawyer acting for the hunt, Tim Lawson-Cruttenden, said: "It is important in this case that the claimants are not trying to stop anything that is lawful. The focus is on unlawful activity."

The application calls for a no-trespass injunction on landowners's property and an exclusion zone to protect the hunt kennels at West Grinstead, which is home to 80 hounds.