GDL Land Law

Lecture 5: Protection of
estates and interests in
Registered Land
Lecturer: Jan Maltby
Learning Outcomes
to understand the rationale behind the system of registration of title LRA 2002
www.landregistry.gov.uk
to recognise the different groups of estates and interests in registered land
and to understand the rules which relate to each group of estates and interests
to understand the concept of overreaching

BPP University Law School

Compulsory First Registration - s.4 LRA
2002
Sale, gift or assent of freehold
Grant of lease for more than 7 years
Assignment of lease with more than 7 years to run
First legal mortgage of freehold, or leasehold with more than 7 years to run

BPP University Law School

REGISTERED LAND:
All the information a purchaser needs: transparent and accessible
Format of title
Electronic
Key details relevant to the property:
Owner (Registered Proprietor)
Extent of Land
Benefits enjoyed by the land
Burdens attached to the land

EExxa
10 ammp plle
e ::
D o
10 Dow wnniin
nggS Sttrre
LLon d eeett,,
BPP University Law School
ondono n
Land Registration Act 2002
3 groups of rights

1. Registrable dispositions
broadly equivalent to legal estates and interests
s.27 substantive registration
2. Interests which must be protected
By a s32 Notice
or by a s40 Restriction
3. Overriding interests
Which do not have to be registered or protected in any way to be binding
Schedule 3 LRA 2002

BPP University Law School

7
 Substantive registration:

Transfers of f/h or l/h

Legal New lease

charge/ for 7+ years
mortgage S27 LRA 2002

Express easement
Landlords right of
for a f/h or l/h term
entry

BPP University Law School

 Interests protected by Notice

Restrictive covenant
Estate contract
of any type

S32 LRA 2002

Automatically
entered if there
s.29 LRA 2002 is a legal easement
-The effect of (see previous slide)
non-reg
(next slide)
BPP University Law School
The effect of non-registration of
Basic rule of priority in s28 does not apply

Non-registration:
S.29 LRA 2002: purchaser for value takes the land free of the interest
pfv includes buyer AND lender
but a person who acquires the land without paying for it is still bound
De Lusignan v Johnson [1973] 230 EG 499
Wilkes v Spooner [1911] 2KB 473

a Notice

BPP University Law School

 Interests protected by Notice

Restrictive covenant
Estate contract
of any type

Interests which cannot S32 LRA 2002

be protected by Notice
are listed in s33 Automatically
entered if there
is a legal easement
s.29 LRA 2002
-The effect of
non-reg
Interests protected by Restriction
Co-ownership and
Bankruptcy Trusts
-Usually found only in
express trusts

S40 LRA 2002

Overreaching:
Williams and Glyns v Boland
City of London BS v Flegg
 Overreaching
ss. 2 and 27 LPA 1925
Only applies to beneficial interests behind a trust not to
any other type of interest in land
Detaches the equitable interest from the land and
transfers it into money
Money can be purchase money or mortgage loan
Money must be paid to at least 2 trustees/legal owners
Protects the buyer/lender who takes land free of
beneficial interests
Protects the beneficiary as he still has interest in the sale
proceeds
Applies to registered and unregistered land
OVERREACHING

When money is paid to at least 2

Beneficiaries
trustees, have interest
beneficiaries havein land
interest in money, not land
 Overreaching fails

Williams & Glynns Bank v Boland 1981

H had legal title
Mortgaged house to bank
W in occupation had equitable interest
Interest not overreached: it remained in the land
It was an overriding interest (see later)
 Overreaching succeeds

City of London Building Society v Flegg

D&S had legal title

Mortgaged house to building society
H&W in occupation had equitable interests
Interests overreached and transferred to money
Bank took house free of interests
 Interests which do not need to be registered to be binding:
Overriding interests

Implied legal easements:

para 3
Legal Leases for 7 years
or less: para 1

Schedule 3
LRA 2002

Interests of people in actual

occupation: para 2
Beneficiaries under a trust (implied)
Equitable lessees
OVERRIDING INTERESTS Legal Leases of
less than 7 years
Mr Cameron grants a 5 year legal
lease of the attic in No 10 to Mr Clegg

A legal lease of 7 years or less is an

overriding interest.

Mr Miliband wants to buy No 10 and

checks the registered title.

Mr Miliband buys No 10 and moves in

only to discover that Mr Clegg is
living in the attic.

The legal lease to Mr Clegg is an OI

and binds Mr Miliband even though
there was no reference to it
 Interests which do not need to be registered to be binding:
Overriding interests

Implied legal easements:

para 3
Legal Leases for 7 years
or less: para 1

Schedule 3
LRA 2002

Interests of people in actual

occupation: para 2
Beneficiaries under a trust (implied)
Equitable lessees
 Rights of persons in actual occupation

INTEREST IN LAND + ACTUAL OCCUPATION = OVERRIDING INTEREST

Williams & Glynns Bank v Boland (earlier)
Mrs B was in actual occupation
But what if she had moved out?
 What is actual occupation?

Link Lending v Bustard 2010

Abbey National v Cann 1991
Chhokar v Chhokar 1984

Stockholm Finance Ltd v Garden Holdings Inc 1995

Strand Securities v Caswell 1965

 Actual occupation is not
decisive of an OI!
NB: To have an OI the holder must have:
an interest in land AND
be in Actual Occupation AND
the conditions in Schedule 3 para 2 must be
met:
The holder must disclose interest on reasonable inquiry
or
holders occupation must be obvious on reasonable
inspection of land and buyer/lender must know of it
 Remember!

A person with an interest in land and in actual

occupation may have an OI (Sched 3 para 2)

The interest is usually a beneficial interest behind a

trust but could be eg: an equitable lease (Webb v
Pollmount 1966) but not an equitable easement
(Chaudhary v Yavuz 2012)

But if the OI stems from a beneficial interest behind

a trust it can be overreached by paying the
purchaser money to at least 2 trustees
 Protection by Registration - summary

Registrable dispositions must be substantively

registered if they are to have legal effect
Transfers of freehold; grant or assignment of long leases;
legal easements; legal mortgages
Other interests can be protected by:
Notices: for most equitable interests as they are
intended to bind new owners/lender
Restrictions: for beneficial interests behind a trust
Overriding interests
Bind even though they do not appear on the register
Short leases; implied legal easements; people in actual
occupation(though these can be overreached)
Next time

Tutorial 1:
Qs 1 & 2 on proprietary and personal rights
Qs 3-5 on different aspects of land

Lecture 2:
Freehold Estates
Notes Chapter 2
Have your statute book with you

BPP University Law School