Achieving the Main Aims of the Land Registration Acts

Achieving the Main Aims of the Land Registration Acts

A system of land registration has been in existence for well over one

hundred years. The LRA[1] 1862 and the LTA[2]s 1875 and 1897 provided

a system for voluntary registration of title. The LRA 1862 was found

to be unworkable and thus replaced by the LTA 1875 and then 1897. The

LTA 1897 made registration of title compulsory on dealings with land

in the county of London, prior to this the number of titles registered

was very small. However, it was not until 1st December 1990 that the

compulsory areas were extended to the whole of England and Wales[3].

It is now estimated that over 80% of titles are now registered[4].

Currently the main statutory basis is the ill-drafted[5] LRA 1925, as

amended by numerous later pieces of property legislation[6]. Many

consider the present legislation to be imperfect, worthy of note is

the opinion of the Lord Chancellor's Department[7]. Many of the later

enacted LRAs have been to rectify problems arising from the 1925 Act.

In 1925 no less than six pieces of property legislation[8] were

enacted which resulted in a widespread legislative reform of English

property law.

Under the system of land registration there is no need to undertake

extensive investigation of root of title, this is because all

information is on the land certificate. A land certificate is issued

when a land transaction is completed. It is important to remember that

it is the register itself not the land certificate that is the

document of title. Unlike the system of unregistered land title deeds

need only be inspected once, by the Land Registrar, reducing

repetition, time and c...

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...kar (1989) FLR 313.

[56] Skipton Building Society v. Clayton (1993) 25 HLR 596.

[57] City of London Building Society v. Flegg (1988) AC 54.

[58] Page 83, Land Law, Louisa Lidbetter.

[59] Peffer v. Rigg (1977) 1 WLR 285.

[60] Lyus v. Prowsa Developments Ltd (1980) 1 WLR 1044.

[61] Howell v. Montey (1991) TLR 17th March 1990.

[62] "it should be made clear in the Act that the doctrine of notice

shall not apply to dealings with registered land except in those cases

where the act expressly provides to the contrary".

[63] S.82 Land Registration Act 1925; Rectification of the register.

[64] Norwich & Peterborough Building Society v. Steed (1992) 3 WLR

669.

[65] Re Chowood's Registered Land (1933) CH 574.

[66] Law Commission Report Number 158.

[67] Re Chowood's Registered Land (1933) CH 574.