Land Law Notes
Third Party Rights and Interests & Fixtures and Chattels
Land, Fixtures and Chattels:
Land: ‘includes land of any tenure, and mines and minerals, whether of not held apart from
the surface, buildings or parts of buildings and other corporeal hereditaments; also a
manner, an advowson*, and a rent and other incorporeal hereditaments, and an easement,
right, privilege, or benefit in, over, or derived from land..’ s.205(1)(ix) Law of Property Act
1925
‘Corporeal Hereditaments’: Things that can be touched and felt (Land itself).
‘Incorporeal Hereditaments’: Can neither be handled nor felt (Right to cross someone else’s
land to access yours etc.).
Advowson: Right to nominate a candidate to church office.
Definition is not exhaustive – Has been said that the possession of land ‘extends upwards to
infinity and downwards to the centre of the earth.’ This has been restricted by Bernstein of
Leigh v Skyviews and General: Landholder’s claim to airspace should be restricted to such a
height as is necessary for him to enjoy in an ordinary way the land that he owns and the
structures that are placed upon it. Beyond that he has no more claim to airspace than any
other member of the public.
Fixtures and Chattels:
- Chattels: Items not attached to the property. Seller can take chattels.
- Fixtures: Items attached to the property. On completion buyer expects to receive
fixtures attached to the land.
Disputes over fixtures and chattels settled by applying rules developed by courts. There are
two tests (Berkley v Poulett):
- Method and Degree of Annexation: If fixed to the property, and removing would
cause damage to property, is presumed to be a fixture. If removal would not cause
damage, it can be presumed to be a chattel.
- The Object and Purpose of Annexation: If an item has been placed on the property
in order to enhance the property in some way, it is deemed to be a fixture (even if it
is not fixed to the property). A fixture is an item that is an integral part of the
property or essential for the purpose of the property. A chattel is an item that has
been brought into the property so that the item itself can be better enjoyed/used.
Where there are conflicts between the two tests, the second test takes precedence.
,D’Eyncourt: Number of freestanding items considered to be fixtures – Tapestries fixed into
panelling in the walls, a particular portrait in a certain location, carved kneeling figures in
the great hall and sculpted marble vases, and lions at head of the steps, as they were all part
of the architectural design of the property.
Leigh v Taylor: Certain tapestries displayed by being stretched over canvas and then tacked
to a framework of wood and then nailed to walls. House of Lords considered tapestries
never lost character as chattels, as this was the only way they could be displayed properly.
Elitestone Ltd.: A house constructed so as to be removable may well remain a chattel, whilst
a house constructed in such a way as to not be removed, except by destruction, cannot have
been intended to remain as a chattel.
Botham v TSB Bank plc: Fitted carpets and curtains were not fixtures. Light fittings also
chattels, as were gas fires connected to building only by a gas pipe. Fitted kitchen units were
fixtures. White fixtures (e.g. dishwasher and washing machine) manufactured to standard
sizes and fitted into standard sized holes were to be held as chattels.
Concepts of Ownership:
Doctrine of Tenure: Concerns the way in which land is held – from whom and on what
terms. Only the crown owns land, whilst everyone else is a ‘tenant’.
Concept of the Estate:
An estate is a period of time. A person owning an estate can create out of it a lesser estate,
or shorter period of time, and confer the benefit of such lesser estate on others.
There are two estates in land – Set out in s.1(1) Law of Property Act 1925:
The only estates in land which are capable of subsisting or of being conveyed or created at
law are –
(a) An estate in fee simple absolute in possession;
(b) A term of years absolute.
Legal Freehold/ Freehold Estate (s.1(1)(a)): Can be passed to an heir. May be sold or given
away, and on death it may be inherited (‘fee simple’). The estate is not determinable or
conditional on any event (‘absolute’). ‘In possession’ is entitlement to possession of the land
now. Only situation in which a freehold will come to an end is when the owner dies leaving
no will and no heirs to whom the property could pass.
Legal Leasehold/ Leasehold Estate (s.1(1)(b)): Is of limited duration. Freehold owner can
grant another person the right to use the land for a fixed or determinable period of time
(landlord-tenant relationship). Fee simple owner retains the freehold estate, but loses the
, right to occupy and use the land, but gains payment from the tenant. To qualify as a
leasehold estate, the tenant must have exclusive possession (ability to exclude everyone
from the property, inc. landowner) of the property for a fixed and certain duration.
Relationship Between Common Law and Equity:
Where there is a conflict between common law and equitable rules, the equitable rules will
prevail.
One person can appear to have legal ownership of a property, even if someone has an
equitable interest in it. E.g. ‘A’ transfers property to ‘B’ in order for ‘B’ to transfer to ‘C’
when ‘C’ comes of age. ‘B’ has legal ownership, but ‘C’ has an equitable interest. Legal
owner has rights recognised at common law, but equitable owner has rights recognised in
equity.
Third Party Rights and Interests over Land:
Third Party Interests: Owners are able to create, in favour of others, rights over their land
that fall short of ownership of an estate. May be legal or equitable, or they may arise under
statute.
‘Legal Interests’: Five interests capable of being legal interests listed in s.1(2) Law of
Property Act 1925, including:
(a) An easement*, right or privilege in or over land for an interest equivalent to an
estate in fee simple absolute in possession or a term of years absolute;
(c) A charge by way of legal mortgage*.
Easement: A right attached to one piece of land and imposes a corresponding burden on
another piece of land. S.60 LPA: Where no term length stated, it will be fee simple.
Mortgage: An interest in land given as security for a loan.
Any interest not set out in s.1(2) is only capable of taking effect as an equitable interest
(s.1(3)), it is not capable of being legal.
There are two types of Equitable Interest:
- The Rights of Beneficiaries Under a Trust;
- Equitable Interests in Land Where no Trust is Involved.
Equitable Interests Under Trusts: The beneficial interest in the land equates to the
equitable interest under a trust and is recognised by s.1(3) Law of Property Act 1925.
