NEW BOOK: Land Registration Law Reform in England and Wales

There's a new book out by Hart Publishing and edited by Amy Goymour, Stephen Watterson, and Martin Dixon titled New Perspectives on Land Registration. Judging from the table of contents, the work looks like quite a fascinating read--particularly for those interested in the role that information and registration play in the allocation of property rights. Here's a short summary of the title:

The Land Registration Act 2002 has been in force for almost fifteen years. When enacted, the legislation, which replaced the Land Registration Act 1925, was intended to offer a clear and lasting framework for the registration of title to land in England and Wales. However, perhaps confounding the hopes of its drafters, the legislation's interpretation and application has since generated many unanticipated problems which demand attention.

In this book's twenty chapters, leading land law scholars, Law Commissioners past and present, judges, and Registry lawyers unpick key technical controversies, and expose underlying theoretical and policy concerns. Core issues addressed in these chapters include: the legitimate ambitions of registration regimes; the nature and security of title afforded by registration; the resolution of priority disputes affecting registered titles; the relationship between the general law and the registration regime; and new challenges presented by modern technological developments.

And here's the table of contents:

PART I: FOUR PERSPECTIVES ON MODERN LAND REGISTRATION SYSTEMS

A (Former) Law Reformer's Perspective: Reforming the LRA 2002-Catalysts and Questions
Elizabeth Cooke
2. The Land Registry's Perspective: The Practical Challenges of Land Registration
John Pownall and Richard Hill
3. The Land Registration Jurisdiction: An Analysis of the First Twelve Years
Edward Cousins
4. A Broader Development Perspective: Economic and Political Drivers of Worldwide Land Registration Reform
Pamela O'Connor

PART II: CONTEMPORARY PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

A. THE NATURE OF REGISTERED TITLE
5. Adverse Possession Under the LRA 2002
Owen Rhys
6. The Continuing Relevance of Relativity of Title Under the Land Registration Act 2002
Amy Goymour and Robin Hickey
B. ALTERATION AND INDEMNITY
7. Guaranteed Title: No Title, Guaranteed
Emma Lees
8. Can Rectification be Retrospective?
Charles Harpum
9. Assessing Rectifi cation and Indemnity: After Gold Harp and Swift 1st
Roger Smith
10. De-throning King Midas: The New Law of Land Registration in Scotland
Kenneth GC Reid
11. Lack of Proper Care
Simon Cooper
12. Reforming the Indemnity Scheme
Nicholas Hopkins
C. PRIORITIES BETWEEN COMPETING INTERESTS
13. Priority Contests Involving Registered Titles
Martin Dixon
14. Subrogation, Priority Disputes and Rectification: Mapping a Route Through the Thicket
Stephen Watterson
D. THE LAND REGISTRATION REGIME AND THE GENERAL LAW
15. A Tale of Three Promises: Setting the Scene
Stephen Watterson and Amy Goymour
16. A Tale of Three Promises: (1) The Title Promise
Stephen Watterson and Amy Goymour
17. A Tale of Three Promises: (2) The Priority Promise
Stephen Watterson and Amy Goymour
18. A Tale of Three Promises: (3) The Empowerment Promise
Stephen Watterson and Amy Goymour
E. THE MECHANICAL CHALLENGES OF LAND REGISTRATION IN A MODERN SOCIETY
19. Lessons from Scottish Land Registration Reform: Changes Under the Bonnet
Emma Waring
20. Automating State Guarantee of Title Systems: System Design and Possible Outcomes-Australasian Thoughts
Rod Thomas, Rouhshi Low and Lynden Griggs