‘Land Registration in England & Wales: problems, solutions and missed opportunities’

Abstract

The Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002) is structured around three functions. First, it controls how rights are created and transferred. In order to operate at law, the creation or transfer of rights must be registered. This is a question of regulating the formalities with which parties much comply in order to perfect their intention with regards to their rights. Second, it is designed to provide a degree of protection in the form of a ‘guarantee of title’ to estates which are registered. Since not all registrable interests are estates, this guarantee does not extend to all registered interests. The guarantee ought to provide protection against removal from the register without consent, and compensation should such occur. Third, it is designed to control the priority of competing interests in registered land. Purchasers of land, through minimal and reasonable inquiries, should be able to establish the extent to which others’ rights in the land will be binding upon them