1st Edition

Land Registration and Title Security in the Digital Age New Horizons for Torrens

Edited By David Grinlinton, Rod Thomas Copyright 2020
    438 Pages
    by Informa Law from Routledge

    This book examines the current state of, and emerging issues in relation to, the Torrens and other systems of land registration, and the process of automation of land registration systems in jurisdictions where this is occurring worldwide. It analyses the impacts of advances in digital technology in this area and includes contributions from of a number of experts and leaders in this subject from a number of jurisdictions. While it has an Australasian bias, there are important chapters outlining current challenges and developments in Scotland, England and Wales, Ireland, and the Netherlands. The book will be relevant to those engaged in land registration and conveyancing processes, including, but not limited to, property law practitioners and conveyancers, academics in this field, government and public policy experts, law and property students, and IT and IP experts, especially those working on developing automated land registration systems.

    List of Contributors

    Table of Cases

    Table of Legislation

    Foreword

    D. W. MCMORLAND

    Introduction

    DAVID GRINLINTON AND ROD THOMAS

    PART I: Land Title Security: Recent Developments and Current Issues

    1. Title Guarantee or Title Indefeasibility?

    MARTIN DIXON

    2. Fraud and Torrens

    PROFESSOR THE HON. WILLIAM GUMMOW AC

    3. In Personam Claims: Developments and Thoughts

    FIONA BURNS

    4. Indefeasibility of Title: Law Reform in Scotland and New Zealand

    KENNETH G. C. REID

    5. Recent Developments in the Torrens System in Australia

    BRENDAN EDGEWORTH

    6. Reform of the New Zealand Land Transfer Act 2017

    RT HON SIR PETER BLANCHARD

    7. The New Fraud Test and Manifest Injustice

    NEIL CAMPBELL AND ROD THOMAS

    8. Knocking at the Compensation Door: What Might a Deprived Owner Expect Under the Land Transfer Act 2017?

    ELIZABETH TOOMEY

    9. The Registrar’s Powers in the Digital Age

    DAVID GRINLINTON

    10. Making Personal Obligations Binding: Covenants in Gross and Encumbrances Under New Zealand’s New Land Transfer Act

    THOMAS GIBBONS

    PART II: Automation of Land Registration Systems

    11. Automation, the Land Registration Act (England and Wales) and the Future

    NICK HOPKINS

    12. Automation of a Torrens Register: An Australian Perspective

    PROFESSOR SHARON CHRISTENSEN

    13. The Development and Current Position of Electronic Conveyancing in Ireland

    SANDRA MURPHY

    14. Automation of the New Zealand Torrens Register: Practitioner Abuse, Risk and Liability

    ROD THOMAS

    PART III: Cross-cutting Issues and Emerging Challenges

    15. Are Land Registers Becoming Online Intermediary Platforms of Land Data?

    SJEF VAN ERP

    16. Privatisation, the Consensus Algorithms of Blockchains, and Land Titling in Australia: Where Are We Now, and Where Are We Going?

    LYNDEN GRIGGS AND ROUHSHI LOW

    17. Judicial Interpretation of Torrens Registered Documents

    BEN FRANCE-HUDSON

    18. Indigenous Land Rights and Land Registration Systems: Māori and the Land Transfer Act 2017

    JUDGE LAYNE HARVEY

    19. Managing Property Law Risk: The Role of Private Insurance

    JONATHAN FLAWS

    20. Land Registration in England & Wales: Problems, Solutions and Missed Opportunities

    MARTIN DIXON AND EMMA LEES

    Biography

    Professor David Grinlinton practiced as a lawyer, working mainly in the property law, commercial leasing, and energy areas, before joining the Faculty of Law at the University of Auckland, New Zealand, in 1990. His research and teaching interests include all aspects of real property law, commercial and residential leasing, and planning and resource management law. He is a Barrister and Solicitor if the High Court of New Zealand. ORCID: 0000-0002-9387-1766

    Associate Professor Rod Thomas practiced as a barrister at the Auckland bar for many years and now is an academic at the Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand, teaching mainly in real property related subjects. He is the Senior Visiting Research Fellow of the Cambridge Centre for Property Law at the University of Cambridge, UK, and the Australasian representative to the IPRA-CINDER Scientific Committee. ORCID: 0000-0002-2792-1251