Not all land has made it onto the central register. For a slice of property in England and Wales, ownership is still proved the old way — by tracing a chain of historical title deeds. As a solicitor acting on a purchase of such land, you cannot simply check a register; you have to investigate the title yourself and work out which third-party interests will bind your client. Getting this right protects the buyer; getting it wrong can leave them saddled with rights they never bargained for.
This lesson walks you through the whole system, from first principles to the practical checks you'll run on a transaction.
- The Unregistered System and First Registration — how the system works, how title is proved, and when unregistered land must finally be registered.
- Deducing and Investigating Title — finding a good root of title and tracing the chain back through the deeds.
- Legal Interests — why legal interests bind the world automatically, and the puisne mortgage exception.
- The Land Charges System — the name-based register, its main classes of charge, and how registration works.
- Effect of Non-Registration and Searches — when an unregistered charge becomes void, and the protection a search certificate gives.
- The Doctrine of Notice — the fallback rule for equitable interests and the Equity's Darling defence.
- Trusts and Overreaching — how a buyer can take free of beneficial interests by paying the right people.