Registered Land

Registered Land

1. Title land = registered at the land registry. Objective = create a register that accurately reflects the state of the registered property = current owner, 3rd party interests burdening the land (mirror principle), insurance - register = state guaranteed anyone that suffers as a result of error = compensated. Curtain - certain equitable interests should be hidden behind a curtain of trust hence purchaser needs not to look behind, equitable interest = overreached & transferred 2 money 2 be paid to 2 trustees.

2. registered land = LRA 2002 seek 2 adequately protect 3rd party interest, limit the scope of overriding interests, enable as many interests to be registered.

   • S1 LPA 1925 - legal lease + freehold = estates that can be legal. Interests = easements,rentcharge, charge by way of legal mortgage
     • Formalities: s53(1) (a) LPA - no interest in land can be created without writing + signed by the person creating/transferring.
       • Exception - s54 (1) - LPA - leases of 3 years & under which can be created orally . Must be able to take possession immediately, market value, no upfront fee.
         • S52 (1) LPA - conveyances of land/interest = void for the purposes of creating/conveying legal estate unless made by deed.
           • Deed - s1(2) LMPA 1989 - make it clear that it is a deed, validly executed, signed by the executor & attested by a witness/presence of executor at his direction attested by 2 witnesses.
             • Equity- writing must be in a form of a contract which incorporates all the terms of the contract & signed by both parties. S2(1) LMPA 1989.
               • Interests must be registered to be complete, failure = void title reverts back to the owner and they hold on trust ( freehold, lease over 7 years)
                 • Overriding interests - bind the subsequent purchaser without registration they would be unreasonable to expect the holder to take steps to register interests found in sch1 - override upon 1st registration - legal lease of 7 yrs or less, interests of person in actual occupation, legal easement/profits
                   • Sch 3 - legal lease of 7 years/ less para 2, interest must exist at the time of disposition + actual occupation must be obvious upon reasonable careful inspection of land if not obvious the purchaser must have knowledge of interest, failure to disclose = interest will not exist.
                     • Actual occupation - physical presence on the land which has some degree of permanence, Chhokar = absence from property while having a baby + furniture + belongings still present on property = actual occupation. Abbey National building society v Cann - laying carpets + moving in furniture = preparatory acts of occupation.
                       • Interests entered on the register - notice or restriction. Notice = expressly created easements/grant of legal charge - burdens anyone coming onto the land. s38 LRA 2002 - interests protected this way = estate contracts, restrictive covenants between freeholders & equitable easements. If interest is not entered it will not bind the purchaser of a valuable consideration. Restriction = beneficial interest under trust limits the way a registered proprietor can deal with land - gives a specific procedure that needs to be followed e.g. property needs to be disposed of where purchase monies are paid to at least 2 trustees. Complying with restriction = granted land free of interest, restriction not entered but paid to 2 trustees = overreached. If paid to one trustee = will be attached to land.
                         • Priorities - registered estate sold for consideration = bound only by interests which are registered + overriding. Land = gift is bound by registered / overriding interests + unprotected interests - s.29 LRA 2002