Between exchange of contracts and registration, a buyer is at their most exposed. Legal title to registered land only passes once the transfer deed is completed by registration at the Land Registry — and in the gap before that happens, a competing interest could leapfrog your buyer. A solicitor's job here is to close that gap: run the right searches, secure a priority period, get the deed drafted and executed correctly, and lodge the application in time. This is the practical, document-by-document heart of conveyancing, and getting each step right is what protects your client and their lender.
What this lesson covers:
- Passing of Legal Title and Pre-Completion Searches — how legal title passes, why the priority period matters, and which search forms to use.
- Protecting the Lender and Other Searches — naming the lender, bankruptcy searches, and the extra checks for unregistered land and corporate sellers.
- Drafting the Transfer Deed — who drafts it, the TR1 and TP1 forms, and how to complete the key panels correctly.
- Valid Deeds, Execution and Delivery — the requirements for a valid deed, how individuals and companies execute, and the effect of escrow.
- Co-Ownership and the Form A Restriction — joint tenants versus tenants in common, survivorship, and overreaching.
- Discharging the Mortgage and Registration — undertakings, the DS1, requisitions, and lodging the AP1 application.