(1)If any question arises as to whether a person is entitled to an indemnity under any provision of the [1925 c. 21.] Land Registration Act 1925 or as to the amount of any such indemnity, he may apply to the court to have that question determined.
(2)Section 83(5)(c) of the Land Registration Act 1925 (by virtue of which no indemnity is payable under that Act on account of costs incurred in taking or defending any legal proceedings without the consent of the registrar) shall not apply to the costs of an application to the court under subsection (1) above or of any legal proceedings arising out of such an application ; and as regards any such application or proceedings section 131 of that Act (which provides that the registrar, among others, shall not be liable to any action or proceeding for or in respect of anything done or omitted as there mentioned) shall not apply to the registrar.
(3)On an application under subsection (1) above the court shall not order the applicant, even if unsuccessful, to pay any costs except his own unless it considers that the application was unreasonable.
(4)Section 83(7) of the [1966 c. 39.] Land Registration Act 1925 (registrar's power to determine certain questions falling within subsection (1) above) shall cease to have effect; and for section 83(8) of that Act (which, as amended by section 1(3) of the Land Registration Act 1966, empowers the registrar to grant an indemnity on account of costs and expenses properly incurred in relation to a matter in respect of which indemnity is claimed, whether or not any other indemnity money is payable in respect of that matter) there shall be substituted the following subsection—
“(8)Subject to subsection (5)(c) of this section, as amended by section 2(2) of the Land Registration and Land Charges Act 1971—
(a)an indemnity under any provision of this Act shall include such amount, if any, as may be reasonable in respect of any costs or expenses properly incurred by the applicant in relation to the matter; and
(b)an applicant for an indemnity under any such provision shall be entitled to an indemnity thereunder of such amount, if any, as may be reasonable in respect of any such costs or expenses, notwithstanding that no other indemnity money is payable thereunder.”
(5)Nothing in this section shall be taken to preclude the registrar from settling by agreement claims for indemnity under the Land Registration Act 1925.
(6)Where any such question as is mentioned in subsection (1) above has arisen (whether before or after the passing of this Act) before the time of the commencement of this section and has not before that time been referred to the court in pursuance of rules under the [1925 c. 21.] Land Registration Act 1925, that subsection shall apply to it notwithstanding that it arose before that time ; but where any such question has been so referred before that time, it shall be determined as if this section and, so far as it relates to the repeal of section 83(7) of the Land Registration Act 1925 and section 1(3) of the [1966 c. 39.] Land Registration Act 1966, section 14(2)(b) of this Act had not come into force.
