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LPC Law Notes Property Law and Practice Notes

Investigation Of A Registered Title Notes

Updated Investigation Of A Registered Title Notes

Property Law and Practice Notes

Property Law and Practice

Approximately 490 pages

A collection of the best LPC PLP notes the director of Oxbridge Notes (an Oxford law graduate) could find after combing through dozens of LPC samples from outstanding students with the highest results in England and carefully evaluating each on accuracy, formatting, logical structure, spelling/grammar, conciseness and "wow-factor".

In short these are what we believe to be the strongest set of PLP notes available in the UK this year. This collection of notes is fully updated for recent exams, a...

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The following is a more accessible plain text extract of the PDF sample above, taken from our Property Law and Practice Notes. Due to the challenges of extracting text from PDFs, it will have odd formatting:

Date of Copy

  • Is it recent enough? (Worked example starts on p45, to p93 p151, p198, p260)

  • It’s the first bullet point on the official title
Consistency

  • Are the names and addresses in the Property Register the same as the sale contract?

  • Description of the land on registry matches the description on the contract?

  • Does the title number match that on the contract?

  • Is it freehold or leasehold, does this match the contract?

  • Which easements are enjoyed by the property? Do they match the needs of the client?

1. Check the Property Register

P 39 & P 129
It Looks Like Identify/Entry Describe Explain/Why is it a Problem? Action (Always Tell Client)
“TOGETHER with the right for the purchaser to drain water and soil from the property subject to the payment of…”

* Entry__ of the Property Register refers to an Easement of drainage

* Entry__ refers to a Positive covenant to pay – which will be enforceable – mutual benefit and burden Halsell v Brisell clause

  • Easement to allow drainage of water and soil from property.

The use of the drains comes with a cost of maintenance

T&F Note Distinction between Positive and Negative/restrictive Covenants on

P 23

 Client must be informed of the obligation
“TOGETHER with a right of way in common with the owner for the time being….SUBJECT TO the purchaser paying__ SUBJECT FURTHER TO the..

  • Entry__ of the Property Register refers to an easement to use right of way.

  • Entry__ of the…refers to a Positive covenant to pay – which will be enforceable – mutual benefit and burden Halsell v Brisell clause

  • Easement to use right of way.

  • Positive covenant to pay – which will be enforceable - mutual benefit and burden. Halsall v Brizell

  • Must pay % cost of access way if wish to use it.

  • If no wish to use no need to pay but do not trespass

  • If use but not pay then maintenance cost should be paid otherwise there will be trespass.

  • Tell the client.

  • Check to see whether seller has paid.

  • Check to see condition of access way.

  • It is necessary to find a copy of the order making the “right of way” in order to find the exact route of this easement.
“Purchaser shall not acquire any right of light or air or any easement which would interfere with or restrict free use of adjoining property” Entry__ of the property register refers to a No right to air/light

  • Problem with buyer’s use and enjoyment?

  • Problem with future use?

  • reveals that property doesn’t enjoy rights to light over a specific adjoining property. This means that there is nothing to stop the owner of the relevant adjoining land building on that land & blocking off light to the windows etc on the land buyer wants to buy.

  • Inform the client

  • Identify the lands with the benefit and burden and ask owner of likelihood of development.

  • Write to person with benefit: would they negotiate to give up their right?

  • Need to find out the precise location and extent of the adjoining land.
“All mines and minerals under the land…hereby conveyed and also the right to right to work and carry away” Entry__ of the property register refers to a Mines & minerals not included in the sale

  • There is a history of mining on the land

  • Risk of subsidence and damage to the property

  • Property’s value may decrease in light of it

  • Could works be re-opened on the land?

  • Make enquiries via a CON29M to find out about previous & future mining ops

  • Raise requisitions with the seller as to previous works and consequential damage to property

“the land is subject to the covenants contained in the conveyance dated 1923 between…”

  • There may be a Halsell v Brisell clause: cannot take benefit without burden

 Entry__ of the property register refers to a Land subject to/come with covenants not referred to in bundle

Unknown covenants may interfere with intended use

Liability for breach

Apply for a copy of the conveyance referred to and then inform client

Knock the price down because of the clause?

2. Check the Proprietorship Register

P 39 & P 129

  • Is the class of title correct? Absolute is the best P 37(Classes of Titles)

  • Does name of proprietor correspond with the name of the seller? If not, who can sell it?

  • What was the price paid for by the seller when they bought it?

  • Look out for co-owners

It Looks Like Identify/Entry Describe Explain/Why is it a Problem? Action (Always Tell Client)
“no disposition by a sole proprietor of the registered estate (except a trust corporation) under..” Entry__ of the Proprietorship Registry refers to a Tenancy In Common (“TIC”)

  • A restriction that shows joint proprietors are owners at equity as tenants-in-common.

  • (brief reminder that at law the property can only be held as Joint Tenancy)

 REMEMBER that 1. co-owners can only hold the legal estate as joint tenants as opposed to the equitable interest which can be held as joint tenants or tenants-in-common; and 2. That all living legal owners must be a party to any sale (e.g. if 3 living legal owners, 2 can't sell the land) thus, all registered owners must consent to sale

  • Raise requisitions with the seller as to the other where the other party is.

  • If TIC is alive, they must consent. If TIC is dead, obtain a death certificate & then appoint a 2nd trustee to overreach. But if 3 own it: e.g. If A, B and C own the property as a TC then, If A has died, the legal title will now vest in B and C (by operation of the rule of survivorship) as the legal estate can only be held under a JT. It is only the equitable interest that will have been held under a TC which means that A's equitable interest will have passed to his estate. Accordingly, C and B hold the legal estate on trust for themselves and A's estate. The consequence of this is that in order to sell the property free of the trust of land, the trust must be overreached. This occurs when the purchase money is paid to all the legal owners being at least two in number.
“this deed contains a covenant to observe and perform the covenants referred to...

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