Concise Land Law study guide/revision notes covering all content you would need to achieve a high Distinction grade; I achieved 76% using these notes.
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intended to be used as a supplemental tool to aid revision in conjunction with ULaw materials, not as a replacement for them.
FIXTURES AND CHATTELS
STEP 1
State: if contract is silent on what is included in the sale, one must classify objects as either fixtures of chattels
STEP 2
Fixtures: form part of land – must remain with the land when land sold on
Chattels: independent, removable objects that do not form part of land ie personal property → seller will be
free to take them UNLESS contract specifies otherwise (and makes what would usually be a chattel a fixture)
State: “The contract may determine what happens to these items, but in absence of any info about what is in
it, we will use case law”
STEP 3 - Describe each test in full and explain which carries greater weight
Apply 2 tests to determine whether fixture of chattel → paragraph on each
1. Degree and method of annexation (ie attachment) – physical test: Berkley v Poulett
Looks at how securely attached an item is
Is it attached? Yes or no – yes = fixture, no = chattel
APPLY: how firmly is item attached to land?
If attached to soil/securely affixed to land/would cause damage if removed → rebuttable presumption of
fixture: Buckland v Butterfield
If freestanding/item can be easily removed without causing damage → rebuttable presumption of chattel
However, this presumption may be rebutted by Test 2
Test carrying more weight =
2. Object and purpose of annexation – most important test: D’Eyncourt v Gregory and Leigh v Taylor
Ie why is the item attached to the property
D’Eyncourt: if forms part of permanent, architectural design of garden/house ie to enhance the property in
some way → fixture (even if free-standing/not firmly fixed)
Leigh: annexation is only way object can serve is function/purpose → fixture
BUT if item has been brought onto property so that the item itself can be better enjoyed → chattel despite
having being fixed to the property eg painting fixed to wall so the painting can be enjoyed
Apply both test to the facts – use case law examples
Cases where objects were categorised as fixtures or chattels
Object Fixture or chattel? Case
Statue Chattel, provided capable of being removed without Berkley
causing damage and not part of architectural design
Pictures Chattel if hung merely to display them Berkley
, Fixture if hung within the panelled walls or part of the D’Eyncourt
overall architectural design of the room
Stone benches Fixture as there were part of the permanent design of D’Eyncourt
the landscaped garden
Plinth Fixture Berkley
Light fittings, white goods, All usually chattels Botham v TSB
gas fires, fitted carpets and • Carpets = attached to land in an ‘insubstantial
curtains manner’, merely attached for increased
enjoyment
• Light fittings = not part of ‘electrical installation’
– little evidence of how they were fixed and easy
to remove
Kitchen units and bathroom Fixture – taps were highly annexed and necessary for Botham v TSB
fittings – including taps a room to be used as a bathroom
Greenhouse Chattel if easily removed Dibble v Moore
Bungalow, garden shed, Fixture if part of the land and permanently improves Elitestone v Morris
greenhouse the land
Chattel if capable of being easily dismantled and
transferred around garden
STEP 4: If possible, come to a conclusion based on application of law
If can’t definitively conclude → explore both possibilities, say what you would need to know, say what would
make a difference to the overall conclusion
Model answer
If the contract is silent on what is included in the sale, one must classify ____ as either fixtures of chattels.
Fixtures form part of the land so must remain with the land when sold on, whereas chattels are removeable
objects which can be taken when the land is sold. The contract may determine what happens to ____, but in
the absence of any info about what is in it, we will use case law.
2 tests are used to determine whether the benches are fixtures of chattels. The degree and method of
annexation text (Berkley v Poulett) looks at how securely attached an item is. If the item is firmly attached to
the land there is rebuttable presumption of a fixture (Buckland v Butterfield). Whereas if the items can be
easily removed or are freestanding, then there is a rebuttable presumption of a chattel (Berkley v Poulett).
The test which carries more weight is the second test: the object and purpose of annexation test (D’Eyncourt
v Gregory). This test looks at why the item is attached to the property. If the item forms part of the permanent,
architectural design of the land, or if annexation is the only way the object can serve its function/purpose, it
will be a fixture (Leigh v Taylor).
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