Land law lecture one

Question 1

What three questions must you ask for every topic?

Answer 1

content
acquisition
priority and defences

Question 2

what does content mean?

Answer 2

content refers to what does the right enable the holder to do, how are they using the land

Question 3

what does acquisition mean?

Answer 3

what has to be done to acquire that interest and what formal steps and processes do you need to engage with (registration)

Question 4

what does defence mean?

Answer 4

this question is concerned with where the right holders stand in relation to other people and what can they do on their land and what can they stop other people from doing on the land

Question 5

what three things are land law about?

Answer 5

exclusion
control
access

Question 6

what is the rule for a lease longer than a year?

Answer 6

it has to be written

Question 7

what is the rule for a lease under seven years?

Answer 7

it does not have to be written and does not have to be registered

Question 8

what does it mean when we say we view property as a socially constituted fact? (exclusion)

Answer 8

• we are being very pragmatic
• to determine the extent to someone’s entitlement we have to think about how they are using the land therefore, we are not concerned with what is written on paper but with the lived reality of who is using the land as a consequence.

Question 9

what does it mean to view property as a responsibility (access)

Answer 9

this refers to a sense of stewardship. This means that the land is not subject to your individual decision making processes it will be subject to collective decision making processes

Question 10

what key thing must your learn when evaluating points in land law?

Answer 10

when thinking about rules, evaluate their efficiency e.g thinking about land law in terms of economic function, environmental function, think about how rules are conceptualised

Question 11

what did Peter Burke come up with?

Answer 11

The 5 Keys of land law, this refers to the 5 different ways we can split up land, that is time, space, reality, duality and formality

Question 12

What does Peter Burke say?

Answer 12

he argues that land is permanent so it can be dealt in slices of time

Question 13

does time time mean?

Answer 13

dealing with land in slices of time/focus on commercial motivation and dynastic motivation

Question 14

What does it mean to think about land in terms of space?

Answer 14

Refers to looking at the cross-section of land from all areas including the space above and below the land. The law will limit attempt to limit the extent to which the owner can use the land.

Question 15

what does reality refer to?

Answer 15

rights don’t act against the land but other people in relation to the land. This is concerned with interests in the land i.e personal rights/ and proprietary rights.

Question 16

What does duality refer to?

Answer 16

rights can come from different places i.e law and equity

Question 17

what does formality refer to?

Answer 17

land law insists on certain formalities when it comes to the creation and transfer of interests in land i.e registration

Question 18

what does personal rights refer to?

Answer 18

contractual agreement between individuals

Question 19

what does proprietary right mean?

Answer 19

it is a right attached to the land regardless of what the other party may think

Question 20

what does the 1925 act state?

Answer 20

the only legal estates possible are freehold,leasehold

Question 21

what are covenants?

Answer 21

when an individual is limited to what you can do on your own land i.e not using your house as a business

Question 22

what is an estoppel?

Answer 22

promise

Question 23

what are constructive rights?

Answer 23

someone does certain things in the land that allows them to have an interest in them

Question 24

what is a licence?

Answer 24

permission to be in the land, it is a properitary right ….. permission from an owner of land (licensor) to the licensee to use the land for an agreed purpose.

Question 25

what is a freehold?

Answer 25

owning land for a long period of time

Question 26

what is a leasehold?

Answer 26

a carving out of the freehold for a long period of time (exclusive possession)

Question 27

what is a mortgage?

Answer 27

The process of getting money to purchase your own property and obtain security

Question 28

what are easements?

Answer 28

a right benefiting a piece of land

Question 29

Discuss the case of Street v Mountford 1986

Answer 29

• This case clarified the distinction between a licence and a leasehold
• in 1982 there was a rent act that gave renters security, to get around this, landlord made tenants sign a licence
• In this licence there were certain rights such as a ban on anyone other than Ms Mountford occupying the room without prior permission and a requirement to keep the rooms tidy
• Ruling: The judge held that the ‘licence’ was in fact a lease and that it was a grant of land for a term of years with exclusive possession it was a properitary right

Question 30

Discuss the case of Antoniades v Villliers (1990) 1 AC 417:

Answer 30

• Mr V and Mrs Bridger occupied an attic flat in Mr A’s house
• Mr V and Mrs Bridger’s signed separate agreements to prevent exclusive possession (they were identical)
• The rules included: paying £87 a month, he included a clause that stated if he wanted to move in he can or he can move anybody else in the Attic,
• the court found that the couple in fact had a leasehold as they had exclusive possession of their room

Question 31

Discuss the case of Westminster city council 1992

Answer 31

• Westminster city council owned the Cambridge street hostel that helped the local homeless men
• Mr Clarke occupied a room in the hostel and after having been evicted for his behaviour attempted claim he had a lease
• the courts did not rule in his favour stating that he was a licencee. The following were some of terms made in the licence contract:
• haring a room.

Being moved to a different room.

Occupancy by Mr Clarke alone and not anyone he invited.

Termination by the Council with at least seven days’ notice.

Payment by Mr Clarke of £16.79 per week.

The agreement also stipulated that Mr Clarke must:

Not invite anyone to share accommodation/stay overnight.

Keep his room clean and take care of any furniture provided.

Be in his room by 11pm and that visitors have left by then.

Question 32

Discuss the case of AG Securities v Vaugn 1990

Answer 32

Two separate appeals were heard together by the House of Lords. In the first case, AG Securities (an unlimited company) had a long lease of a flat: No 25 Linden Mansions, Hornsey Lane, London. That flat had four bedrooms, as well as communal areas, and it was rented out to four occupiers: Nigel Vaughan and three others. The four had not moved in as a group: each moved in as and when a former occupier left and a room became available. Mr Vaughan had arrived in 1982; two of the other occupiers, in 1984; the fourth occupier, in 1985. In May 1985, AG Securities attempted to terminate the occupation of the four. The four claimed that, acting together, they jointly held a lease, arising from the terms of their agreements with AG Securities, and therefore qualified for statutory protection. AG Securities sought a declaration that the occupiers each had an individual licence. The first instance judge granted that declaration, but the Court of Appeal (Sir George Waller dissenting) held that the occupiers, acting jointly, had a lease. The House of Lords upheld AG Securities’ appeal, holding that the occupiers were, indeed, licensees.

Question 33

Discuss the case of Bruton v London & Quadrant Housing Trust [2000] 1 AC 406:

Answer 33

Quadrant were charity who provided short term accommodation for the homeless.

They had use of a block of flats belonging to Lambeth Borough Council courtesy of a licence agreement which stipulated that no grant of an estate was being made and that the flats should be used for accommodating the homeless.

s32(2) Housing Act 1985 ensured that the Council had no power to make a grant of an estate in the flats to the trust.

Quadrant entered into an agreement with Mr Bruton to occupy a flat by licence.

Mr Bruton later asked for repairs to be undertaken and brought a case under s11 Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 which required certain repairs to be carried out for lessees.

Quadrant entered into an agreement with Mr Bruton to occupy a flat by Licence. He claimed he was a tenant, the question was, did he have a proprietary right or a personal right? Mr Bruton was claiming against the Housing Trust he had a lease. However the housing trust had a licence with the council, and Mr Bruton tried to get a proprietary claim out of a personal right. (Latin: you cannot give what you don’t have)
In the end, the question was, could Mr B claim he had a p right from a housing right as the property had a licence from the council
The court held that to have a lease, it has to be an estate in the land a proprietary right and a pre-existing freehold, you could not create a proprietary right out of a personal right
The court changed that rule, they held that the contract (the personal right) gave rise to a proprietary right
From a personal right came a proprietary right, Bruton turned this on its head
They argued that the type of contract gave the right to exclusive possession and therefore a lease