South Square Private Law Seminar: 'Death, Lies and Land Registration' / 'Protection of a Contractor who was Deceived by a Third Party: Towards a General Theory' (Venue changed)

Please note change of venue due to industrial action

Speakers:

Dr Brian Sloan, University of Cambridge: 'Death, Lies and Land Registration'

Real property is the most valuable and potentially contentious property owned by many people at the point of death. The recent debate surrounding the so-called ‘dementia tax’ and the new residence nil-rate band highlight the significance of the family home from an inheritance perspective. More immediately, land (co- )owned by a now-deceased person may already be a home for a surviving partner and other family members. This paper (co-authored with the practitioner Siôn Hudson) will analyse the law on dealings with registered land after a registered proprietor has died, alongside relevant Land Registry practice, highlighting several conceptual and practical problems in the area. The issues to be discussed include: the tension between the basic conclusiveness of the register under the Land Registration Act 2002 and the logical impossibility of the dead owning property; the possibility that registered title will not devolve onto personal representatives and the associated risks of fraud; and the difficulties related to co-ownership, the position of surviving trustees and severance in light of the personal representative’s duty to retain control of estate property until it is appropriately distributed. The paper will consider whether law and practice are fit for purpose from the perspective of the interests of the now-deceased person, surviving co-owners, estate beneficiaries, personal representatives and practitioners, as well as the objectives of land registration. It will assess whether any reforms are necessary, particularly by comparing the treatment of registered land with that of other forms of significant property owned by now-deceased persons. A paper is attached.

Professor Naoki Kanayama, Keio University, Japan: 'Protection of a Contractor who was Deceived by a Third Party: Towards a General Theory'

This paper will explore those cases where a third party has acted fraudulently towards one of the contracting parties, and that fraud can be attributed to the other contracting party. With a focus on Japanese law, the paper will search for a general theory which might justify giving relief to the fraud victim. A paper is attached.

This seminar is open to all LLM, MCL and PhD students, Faculty members and Faculty visitors.