Land Registration Act 1925 (repealed)

144 Power to make general rules.F7 E+W

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Lord Chancellor may, with the advice and assistance of a judge of the Chancery Division of the High Court [F1 nominated by the Lord Chancellor], the Chief Land Registrar, and three other persons, one to be chosen by the General Council of the Bar, one by [F2 the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food], and one by the Council of the Law Society (which body of persons are in this Act referred to as the Rule Committee), make general rules for all or any or the following purposes:—

(i) For regulating the mode in which the register is to be made and kept;

(ii) For prescribing the forms to be observed, the precautions to be taken, the instruments to be used, the notices to be given, and the evidence to be adduced in all proceedings before the registrar or in connexion with registration, and in particular with respect to the reference to a conveyancing counsel of any title to land proposed to be registered with an absolute title;

(iii) For regulating the procedure on application for first registration, provided that the applicant or his solicitor shall not be bound to make any declaration where a documentary title is shown which would operate as a guarantee in regard to matters not disclosed by the abstract;

(iv) For enabling registration with a possessory title to be provisionally effected pending the investigation of the title;

(v) For regulating the custody of any documents from time to time coming into the hands of the registrar, with power to direct the destruction of any such documents where they have become altogether superseded by entries in the register, or have ceased to have any effect;

(vi) For the taxation of costs charged by solicitors . . . F3 in or incidental to or consequential on the registration of an estate in land or any other matter required to be done for the purpose of carrying this Act into execution, and for determining the persons by whom such costs are to be paid;

(vii) For carrying out the provisions of this Act with respect to compulsory registration;

(viii) For adapting to sub-mortgages and to incumbrances prior to registration the provisions of this Act with regard to charges;

(ix) For the conduct of official searches . . . F4 ;

(x) For enabling cautions to be entered against the registration of possessory and qualified titles as qualified, good leasehold, or absolute and against the registration of good leasehold title as absolute;

(xi) For enabling a mortgagee by deposit to give notice to the registrar by registered letter or otherwise of the deposit or intended deposit with him of the land certificate, or charge certificate: Provided that the fee for the entry of any such notice shall not exceed [F5 5p];

(xii) For allowing the insertion in the register, and in land certificates, of the price paid or value declared on first registrations, transfers, and transmissions of land;

(xiii) For making such adaptations as changes in the general law (including changes effected by the M1 Law of Property Act 1922, or any Acts of the present session of Parliament amending or re-enacting any provisions of that Act) may render expedient, with a view to the practice under this Act being from time to time adapted, so far as expedient, to the practice in force in regard to unregistered land;C

(xiv) For enabling the registrar, without further investigation, to accept a title as absolute or good leasehold, in proper cases, on the faith of certificates given by counsel or solicitors or both;

(xv) For clearing the registered title on suitable occasions, and for enabling the registrar to permit any person interested to inspect entries on the register which have been cancelled, whether or not the title has been closed;

(xvi) For giving notice on land certificates of the general effect of registration;

(xvii) For the registration, by way of notice, on the first registration of the land, of any easement, right, or privilege, created by an instrument and operating at law which appears to affect adversely the land, and so far as practicable by reference to the instrument creating the same;

(xviii) For enabling any person who acquires any such easement, right, or privilege, after the date of first registration of the land, to require (subject to notice being given to the owner of the servient land) entry to be made in the register of notice of the same, and so far as practicable by reference to the instrument creating the right;

(xix) For enabling the first or any subsequent proprietor to require that notice of his title to any such right or interest, whether acquired under an instrument or by prescription or otherwise, being appurtenant or appendant to the registered land, be entered on the register, and, so far as practicable, by reference to the instrument (if any) creating the right or interest, and for prescribing the effect of any such entry;

(xx) For providing for the registration of the title to an annuity or a rentcharge in possession (either perpetual or for a term of years absolute), or to mines and minerals when held separately from the surface, and as to notices to be entered of any exception of mines and minerals; and for preventing the registration of the benefit of any easement, right, privilege, or restrictive covenant, otherwise than as belonging to registered land;

(xxi) For regulating the issue and forms of certificates, and, if deemed desirable, for prescribing any special notification on the certificate to be given by way of warning when incumbrances, notices, and other adverse entries appear on the register;

(xxii) For providing for the cases in which the registrar may grant a certificate that an intended disposition is authorised and will be registered if presented;

(xxiii) For prescribing the effect of priority notices F6 . . .;

(xxiv) For enabling a proprietor of any registered land or charge to register not more than three addresses (including, if he thinks fit, the address of his solicitor or firm of solicitors, to which notices are to be sent;

(xxv) For providing any special precautions to be taken against forgery when the land certificate is not in the possession of the proprietor of the registered land;

(xxvi) For prescribing any matter by this Act directed or authorised to be prescribed and for effecting anything with respect to which rules are by this Act authorised or required to be made;

(xxvii) For adapting the provisions of this Act relating to transfers of registered land to other dispositions authorised to be made by a proprietor;

(xxviii) For prescribing—

(a) the procedure to be adopted when land is or becomes subject to any charitable, ecclesiastical or public trusts,

(b) any consents to be given before a title to such land is registered,

(c) the duties, if any, to be performed by the managing trustees or committee, and

(d) the restrictions, if any, to be entered on the register in regard to such land;

(xxix) For enabling entries to be made in the register on the surrender, extinguishment or discharge of any subsisting interest without previously registering the title to the interest which is merged or extinguished;

(xxx) For enabling such alterations to be made in the register as may be consequential on the conversion of perpetually renewable leases into long terms by the M2 Law of Property Act 1922, as amended;

(xxxi) For regulating any matter to be prescribed or in respect of which rules are to or may be made under this Act and any other matter or thing, whether similar or not to those above mentioned, in respect of which it may be expedient to make rules for the purpose of carrying this Act into execution.

(2) Any rules made in pursuance of this section shall be of the same force as if enacted in this Act.

(3) Any rules made in pursuance of this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament within three weeks after they are made, if Parliament be then sitting, and if Parliament be not then sitting, within three weeks after the beginning of the then next session of Parliament.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by Administration of Justice Act 1982 (c. 53, SIF 37), Sch. 5 para. (d)

F2 Words substituted by virtue of S.I. 1955/554 (1955 I, p. 1200), art. 3

F3 Words repealed by Solicitors, Public Notaries, &c. Act 1949 (c. 21), Sch. 2

F4 Words from “against cautions” to the end of s. 144(1)(ix) repealed by Land Registration Act 1988 (c. 3, SIF 98:2), ss. 1(2)(c), 2, Sch.

F5 Words substituted by virtue of Decimal Currency Act 1969 (c. 19, SIF 10), s. 10(1)

F6 Words repealed by Land Registration Act 1986 (c. 26, SIF 98:2), s. 5(5)(c)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 144 extended (1.10.1997) by 1996 c. 27, s. 32, Sch. 4 para. 4(6) (with Sch. 9 para. 5(1)(b)(ii)); S.I. 1997/1982, art. 3(a)

C2 S. 144(1)(iii)(xiv) extended by Administration of Justice Act 1985 (c. 61,SIF 76:1), s. 34(1)(b)

C3 S. 144(1)(iii) amended (1.1.1992) by S.I. 1991/2684, arts. 1, 2, 4, Sch.1.

C4 S. 144(1)(vi) extended (1.1.1992) by Administration of Justice Act 1985 (c. 61, SIF 76:1), s. 9, Sch. 2 para. 37(b); S.I. 1991/2683, art.2.

C5 S. 144(1)(xxiv) extended by Administration of Justice Act 1985 (c. 61,SIF 76:1), s. 34(2)(b) and extended (1.1.1992) by Administration of Justice Act 1985 (c. 61, SIF 76:1), s. 9, Sch. 2 para. 37(b); S.I. 1991/2683, art.2 and extended (prosp.) by Building Societies Act 1986 (c. 53, SIF 16), ss. 124, 126(4), Sch. 21 paras. 9(b), 12(2)(3)

Marginal Citations

M1 1922 c. 16 (98:1).

M2 1922 c. 16 (98:1).

Textual Amendments applied to the whole legislation

F7 Act repealed (prosp.) by Land Registration Act 2002 (c. 9), ss. 135, 136(2), Sch. 13 (with s. 129, Sch. 12)