When land is co-owned, the difference between a joint tenancy and a tenancy in common decides what happens to a co-owner's share when they die. Under a joint tenancy, survivorship means the share passes automatically to the others; severance switches this off, turning the share into a distinct slice that passes under a will or intestacy. As a solicitor advising on property purchases, relationship breakdowns, bankruptcy or estates, you need to spot whether severance has happened, by what route, and what each party now owns.
This lesson builds that skill step by step:
- Co-ownership, Survivorship and Severance — the two forms of co-ownership, the four unities, survivorship, and what severance actually does.
- The Three Equitable Methods — acting on your own share, mutual agreement, and a mutual course of dealing.
- Written Notice under s 36(2) — the statutory route to sever unilaterally, and when notice counts as served.
- Severance by Operation of Law and Acts That Do Not Sever — bankruptcy and unlawful killing, plus the acts that look like severance but aren't.
- Effect of Severance on Shares — how the shares fall out when one of several co-owners severs.