Land Registry to change dispute resolutions process from January

Land Registry to change dispute resolutions process from January

Land Registry have announced measures to end “long running, unresolved disputes.”

They now say any unresolved dispute between an applicant and objector must be passed to a First-tier Tribunal after six months if an agreement can’t be reached.

The new policy will come into force from the beginning of 2016.

The announcement reads: “From January 2016, we will allow six months for a disputed application to be resolved, before we refer it to the First-tier Tribunal. We currently allow an unspecified amount of time.

“Under the Land Registration Act 2002 (LRA 2002), if we receive a justifiable objection, we must give notice of the objection to the applicant.

“If a dispute arises as a result of an objection and an agreement cannot be reached, we must refer it to the First-tier Tribunal.”

The announcement continues: “The period of time prior to referral to the Tribunal afforded for negotiations to see if agreement can be reached between the parties to a disputed application is to be limited to six months.

“Land Registry lawyers will be able to exercise a discretion to extend this period in exceptional, unavoidable circumstances when cogent reasons have been given for the need for additional time.

“During that six month period Land Registry will only contact the parties twice: when three months of the six month period has elapsed, and after five months. Land Registry will ask if negotiations are continuing.

“If one, or all of the parties say they are not, or do not reply, the dispute will then be referred to the Tribunal.

“Additionally at the five month stage a draft case summary will be sent to the parties for comment in advance of the referral to the Tribunal being made once the six month period has come to an end.”

Land Registry have also announced they will stop issuing warning of cancellation letters from 11th January. Instead, service users will be expected to register email addresses for correspondence.

The full announcement can be read here

Josh Morris

Josh is the Journalist for the Today's Group and writes many of the articles for Today's Conveyancer. He graduated with a degree in Physics from Cardiff University in 2009 before training as a journalist. He has previously written for The Times, The Mirror and The Daily Express.

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