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English law The titles game A brief history of English land law Land registration comparison This document summarises the ways in which the most important interests in land are recorded and protected under the unregistered and registered systems of conveyancing. At the time of writing, most of the Land Registration Act 2002 had come into force, and the LRA 1925 has been repealed, but the 1925 scheme is shown as well for comparison purposes. Please note that this chart contains a number of simplifications, and does not illustrate the changes (to overriding interests in particular) that are scheduled to take place over the next ten years. Key: An interest that is at least capable of being overriding, that is, binding a purchaser of an interest in the land An interest that can be registered with its own title; usually the legal title does not vest with the transferee until the interest is registered An interest which is noted against another title. In unregistered conveyancing, many equitable interests are registerable as land charges against the name of the primary title-holder. In registered conveyancing, interests are entered against the register entry for the land LRA Land Registration Act LCA Land Charges Act Primary estates Interest1 Unregistered land LRA 1925 LRA 2002 Freehold Evidenced by documents Substantively registerable Substantively registerable Lease > 21 years Evidenced by documents Substantively registerable4 Substantively registerable Lease 7-21 years Evidenced by documents Overriding [s70(1)k LRA 1925] Substantively registerable Lease < 7 years Evidenced by documents Overriding [s70(1)k LRA 1925] Overriding [sch 1&3 LRA 2002] Discontinuous lease Evidenced by documents Notable as minor interest Overriding and substantively registerable Future lease2 Evidenced by documents Notable as minor interest Substantively registerable Crown demesne land3 Registerable after conversion to freehold [s73 LRA 2002] 1Where land is unregistered, legal interests are technically binding on the world with or without the evidence of title deeds. However, such interests are likely to be difficult to prove 2A `future lease' here is one that is granted to take effect more than 3 months after grant 3Crown demesne land includes, for example, most of the foreshore. LRA 2002 allows the Crown to grant itself a freehold out of demesne land, and thereby register it. This is mostly to protect against adverse possession 4A lease is not registerable with its own title if it contains an absolute prohibition on assignment, since it is of no interest to a prospective purchaser Legal interests Interest1 Unregistered land LRA 1925 LRA 2002 Legal rentcharge May be inferred from documents Substantively registerable Substantively registerable Legal easement May be inferred from documents Overriding [s70(1)a LRA 1925] Overriding [sch 1&3 LRA 2002] and substantively registerable3 Legal franchise May be inferred from documents Overriding [s70(1)a LRA 1925] Overriding [sch 1&3 LRA 2002] and substantively registerable Legal profit à prendre May be inferred from documents Overriding [s70(1)a LRA 1925] Overriding [sch 1&3 LRA 2002] and substantively registerable3 Legal profit à prendre in gross May be inferred from documents Overriding [s70(1)a LRA 1925] Substantively registerable Legal mortgage with deposit of deeds No need to protect2 n/a - no deeds n/a - no deeds Legal mortgage by demise May be inferred from documents Not registerable where right  of redemption subsists [s8(1) LRA 1925] Not registerable where right  of redemption subsists [s3(5) LRA 2002] Legal mortgage by charge Class C(i) charge (`puisne mortgage')2 Legal charge against title Legal charge against title 1 Where land is unregistered, legal interests are technically binding on the world with or without the evidence of title deeds. However, such interests are likely to be difficult to prove 2 Puisne mortgage created after 1926 is not binding on a purchaser for valuable consideration if not registered as a class C(i) charge [s4(5) LCA 1972]. If deeds are deposited with the lender, the mortgage is not registerable as a land charge, as registration is unnecessary 3 It appears that an easement or profit that is the subject of an express grant cannot be overriding, as a matter of logic. Because legal easements granted expressly are substantively registerable, it must follow that they only achieve legal status on registration, like other registerable interests. Therefore, prior to registration they take effect only in equity, and equitable easements are not overriing. In addition, the 2002 Act makes easements and profits only overriding on a registered disposition if they are, or ought to be, known to the purchaser, or have been exercised within 12 months Equitable interests Interest Unregistered land LRA 1925 LRA 2002 Equitable easement Class D(iii) charge1 May be overriding4 Notable as a non-overriding interest6 Equitable profit à prendre Class D(iii) charge1 Notable as minor interest5 Notable as a non-overriding interest Equitable mortgage Class C(iii) charge2 Notable as minor interest5 Notable as a non-overriding interest Restrictive covenant Class D(ii) charge1 Notable as minor interest5 Notable as a non-overriding interest Equitable lease Doctrine of notice applies3 Notable as minor interest5 Notable as a non-overriding interest Estate contract Class C(iv) charge1 Notable as minor interest5 Notable as a non-overriding interest Beneficiaries' rights Doctrine of notice applies3 Notable as minor interest (usually a restriction)5 Notable as a restriction (not a notice) 1An equitable easement, profit, or restrictive covenant or estate contract is not binding against a purchaser for money or money's worth if not registered as a land charge of the type shown[s4(6) LCA 1972]. 2Equitable mortgage created after 1926 is not binding on a purchaser for valuable consideration if not registered as a land charge [s4(5) LCA 1972]. 3Where the doctrine of notice applies - and it applies to all equitable interests in unregistered land that do not require registration as a land charge - the interest does not bind a bona fide purchaser for valuable consideration 4See Celsteel v Alton House 5Minor interests are not enforceable against a purchaser for valuable consideration unless noted on the register; but see Peffer v Rigg and Lyus v Prowser 6The 2002 Act does not use the term `minor interest' to describe interests that must be protected by a note on the register, although the new notice/restriction notes serve the same purpose as the old notice/caution/restriction/inhibition. Statutory interests Interest Unregistered land LRA 1925 LRA 2002 Actual occupation Relevant to the fact of notice, but not a special case Overriding [s70(1)g LRA 1925]1 Overriding [sch 1&3 LRA 2002]3 Receipt of rents or profits Relevant to the fact of notice, but not a special case Overriding [s70(1)g LRA 1925]1 Overriding [sch 12 LRA 2002] Squatters' rights Relevant to the fact of notice, but not a special case Overriding [s70(1)f LRA 1925] Overriding for transitional period [sch 12 LRA 2002] Matrimonial home rights Class F charge2 Notable as minor interest Notable as a non-overriding interest Interests exluded in `qualified' grade of title n/a - only applies to registered title Overriding [s70(1)h LRA 1925] Overriding [s11(4)a LRA 2002]4 Local land charges Overriding; may be registered as local land charges Overriding; may be registered as local land charges [s70(1)i LRA 1925] Overriding; may be registered as local land charges [sch 1&3 LRA 2002] 1These rights are not overriding if they are not disclosed on enquiry 2Matrimonial home rights are not binding on a purchaser for valuable consideration if not registered as a land charge [s4(8) LCA 1972] 3There is a subtle difference in emphasis in the nature of occupier's overriding interests in LRA 2002. The new legislation preserves the old Act's exception for rights that are not disclosed on enquiry, but also creates a new exception for rights that would not be obvious on reasonable exception 4These rights are not technically overriding interests in the LRA 2002, because they do not appear in the list of overriding interests in schedules 1 & 3. However, ss 11 & 12 make it clear that registration of the estate is subject to any deficiencies in qualified title