Examination papers and Examiners’ reports 2004

Examination paper 2004

Zone B
Time allowed: three hours
Answer four of the following eight questions.

Question 1
‘Now that the Land Registration Act 2002 is in force, the land register will
provide a more accurate reflection of the facts relevant to a given title. No
longer will a purchaser need to be concerned about interests which do not
appear on the register.’
Discuss.

Question 2
When he retired from work, George bought a flat near the house where his
daughter, Rose, lived with her husband, Paul. (The house was registered in
the names of Paul and Rose as beneficial joint tenants.) George was very
fond of Rose and he often told her that she need not worry about the future
as he was leaving her the flat in his will. He often went round to their house
for meals and they helped him with jobs around the flat. In 1998 George’s
health began to deteriorate and the three of them agreed that he should sell
his flat and move into the house with Paul and Rose. George gave Paul the
proceeds of sale of the flat and Paul used part of the money to build an
extension to the house for George’s occupation and part to redeem the
mortgage on the house. Rose died last year and Paul has now told George to
leave the house and to find somewhere else to live.
Advise George.

Question 3
After their parents died in 1995, Elizabeth, Mary and Sylvia decided to use
their inheritance to buy a country cottage. The three sisters contributed
equally to the purchase-price and the cottage was registered in their names
as beneficial joint tenants. At first they used the cottage for occasional
weekends, but in 1997 Sylvia found a job nearby and went to live in the
cottage. In 1999 Elizabeth was posted abroad and sold her interest in the
cottage to Mary. In 2000 Sylvia’s boyfriend, Jim, went to live with her and in
the course of the following year they had a baby. Mary occasionally wrote to
Sylvia offering to sell Sylvia her interest in the cottage, but Sylvia replied that
much as she would like to do so, she simply could not afford it. Mary now
wants the cottage to be sold, but Sylvia objects. Sylvia also claims that Mary
should compensate her for some of the expense she incurred on a new roof
for the cottage.
Discuss.
If the cottage were sold, how would the proceeds of sale be divided?
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Land law

Question 4
In 2001 Len entered into a written agreement with Pam under which Len
allowed Pam to occupy a large bed-sitting room in Len’s house. The
agreement was to last until Len’s son, Steve, returned from a work
assignment overseas. The agreement provided that Pam was to pay a
monthly rent and that she was not to have exclusive possession of the room.
Moreover, it provided that Len would employ a cleaner to clean the room
once a week and that Len, who retained a key to the room, could enter the
room at any reasonable time to ensure that the room was being kept clean.
Pam entered into occupation of the room under the agreement and the
arrangement has worked well so far. Pam now wants to know whether Len
can bring it to an end whenever he wishes. She also wants to know whether a
purchaser of the house would be bound by the arrangement.
Discuss.

Question 5
‘The various ways in which equity intervened to protect a mortgagor of land
may have been justifiable in the past, but there is no justification today for
this sort of intervention.’
Discuss.

Question 6
In 1996 Lionel, the registered owner of two adjoining farms, Greenacre and
Redacre, granted Terry a 12-year lease of Redacre. Terry covenanted to pay
an annual rent and not to build on Redacre. Lionel, for his part, covenanted
not to build on Greenacre. In 1999 Lionel sold Greenacre to Rose and Terry
sublet Redacre to Stan for six years, and in 2000 Terry assigned his lease to
Alan. Recently Rose has started to build to Greenacre and Stan has started to
build on Redacre. No rent has been paid in respect of Redacre since 1999.
Consider who can enforce the various covenants and against whom.

Question 7
Blackberry Cottage had been unoccupied and its garden neglected for several
years and so in 1990 Andrew, the owner of the adjoining property, pulled
down the dividing fence, cleared the garden and incorporated it into his own
garden. In 1992 he tidied up the cottage, put in some furniture and used it
from time to time to accommodate visitors. In 2002 Andrew received a letter
from Pam, the registered owner of Blackberry Cottage, requiring him to
vacate the property as she wished to put it up for sale. Andrew ignored the
letter. Recently Pam has commenced proceedings for possession.
Advise Andrew.
Would your advice be different if Blackberry Cottage had been unregistered
land?

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 Examination papers and Examiners’ reports 2004

Question 8
Vivian was the registered owner of two adjoining semi-detached houses, Pink
House and Grey House. Both houses had back gardens separated from each
other by a low fence, and Grey House had a garage. Vivian lived in Grey
House and in 1999 he offered to sell Pink House to his friend Bob. During the
negotiations Vivian allowed Bob to occupy Pink House and to store some of
his belongings in the garage as Vivian had no use for the garage at the time.
In 2000 he conveyed Pink House to Bob who was registered as the proprietor.
Vivian told Bob that he could cross into the Grey House garden at any time
and use the swimming-pool. For some years Vivian’s television aerial had
been attached to the Pink House roof; Bob knew about this but raised no
objection. In 2002 both houses were sold, Grey House to Lucy and Pink
House to Tim. Lucy refuses to allow Tim to use either her garden, her pool or
her garage. Tim, for his part, has told her to remove her aerial from his
house.
Discuss.

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