Schemes of Registration

‘Bureaucratisation’ of land title

Why is it so?

In which we answer the question…

HISTORICALLYAssigning valid title

Feoffment by livery of seisin* *actual footage

s236 Want of livery of seisin

(1) Livery of seisin shall not be deemed to have been necessary to give effect to any feoffment executed before 3 January 1842, but every such feoffment shall be taken to have operated in the same manner as the same would have done in case there had been livery of seisin in the most valid form.

(2) However, nothing in subsection (1) shall make any such feoffment operate as a tortious conveyance or shall prejudice or affect the title of any person now in possession of land the subject of any such feoffment and claimed adversely to the feoffee or the feoffee's heirs or assigns.

The longevity of symbolism

FROM ACT TO TEXTAssigning valid title (old system)

Statute of FraudsEarly parliamentary intervention in the process of passing enforceable title

‘A verbal contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written on.’

Samuel Goldwyn

The chain of title

Grant

conveyance

mortgage

probate

conveyance

Etc, etc

Proof of title: text-based

Title deeds – do you need them all?

s237 Statutory commencements of title

(1) After the commencement of this Act 30 years shall be substituted for 60 years as the period of commencement of title which a purchaser of land may require, even though earlier title than 30 years may be required in cases similar to those in which earlier title than 60 years might immediately before the commencement of this Act be required.

Old system title…well, it had problems

Validity of title depends on chain

of title

Lacks transparency

Proving priority is complex

Land dealings unsustainable

PARLIAMENTARY INTERVENTION

Creating a register

Deeds registration system

Documented conveyance

Chain of title Register the DEED that created the

title

Win* in a priority competition *condition

s apply

Did deeds registration solve the problems?

IF you registered though, you MAY advance priority

Validity

STILL

depends on

chain of title

STILL lacks

transparenc

y

STILL need

complex process

Documentary titleCreation of title is a private matter.Participation in the public process of registration was voluntary.

Can we fix it?

Yes we can!

Torrens: a land title revolution

Torrens title

Title created BY REGISTRATION

Priority created BY REGISTRATION

Registration compulsory

Title information in the public

domain

Review

Torrens: transparent, public, cheap, straightforward, universal

Old system: opaque, private, expensive, complicated, contingent