Land Law

Instructions:             

Complete the tasks set out below.

Word Limit:              

3,000 words excluding footnotes, bibliography and other items listed in rule 6.83 of the Academic Regulations:

http://web.anglia.ac.uk/anet/academic/public/academic_regs.pdf

Written assignments must not exceed the specified maximum number of words.  When a written assignment is marked, the excessive use of words beyond the word limit is reflected in the academic judgement of the piece of work which results in a lower mark being awarded for the piece of work (regulation 6.82).

Submission Date:       

Students can submit assignments late (ie: after the published or extended deadline), up to five working days after the published (or extended) deadline. The element of assessment to which the assignment contributes is capped at 40% (regulation 6.60).

Requests for short-term extensions will be considered in the case of illness or other valid cause, by the Student Advisers

Mitigation Date:  

The deadline for submission of mitigation in relation to this assignment is no later than five working days after the submission date of this work.

Further details:   

This assignment must be completed individually. For further guidance see Academic Honesty Policy: 

Referencing:        

Work must be properly referenced (see Academic Honesty Policy above) and MUST use the OSCOLA system and include a bibliography.  For further guidance on OSCOLA see: http://libweb.anglia.ac.uk/referencing/oscola.html       

ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS

Answer any TWO from the following four questions. You should allocate roughly 1,500 words per question and ensure that your total does not exceed 3,000 words.

You must answer ONE question from PART A and ONE question from PART B.

PART A

Question 1

In the summer of 2018 Adele purchased the registered freehold house called  La Plage, in Bournemouth for £450,000. Adele’s mother, Beverley, lived in Italy but provided the deposit of £45,000 for La Plage, with Adele becoming the sole proprietor. Adele raised the remainder of the purchase price with a mortgage, which was arranged through Cantander Bank.

Adele gave Beverley a receipt to evidence her contribution to the purchase price and she always allowed Beverley to use the annexe at the back when her mother was visiting the UK.

A neighbour, Deepak, has been given permission to use the shed at the rear of La Plage until the restoration of his garage, as he has nowhere dry to store his Harley Davidson.

Adele’s brother, Chris, really loves La Plage. One night the siblings had a night in and enjoyed a few glasses of wine. In that moment Adele promised that, were she ever to sell the house, she would give Chris a ‘good price’. They jokingly wrote this on the back of the supermarket receipt for the wine.

Adele now wishes to sell La Plage, as she finds it too sandy as a residence. A number of interested parties have offered her more than the market value of £530,000.

Advise Adele what her legal position is in relation to the rights of the other parties (Cantander Bank, Beverley, Deepak, Chris), and how those rights could/should have been protected. Additionally, consider to what extent a new buyer may be bound by those rights were she to sell La Plage.

OR

Question 2 

In 2017, when they were going to University in Newcastle, the quadruplets Alan, Blake, Calum and David decided to invest their inheritance money in a house for them all to live in. Together they purchased the registered freehold of 32 Haymarket Lane.

After University, they decided to keep the property, but did not all intend to live there. Alan and Blake sat down with the others and outlined their plans to set up a Vegan cafe in London. They explained that it had been fun sharing the house while at uni but that things had changed and it was ‘time to start living separately like grown ups and handle our own finances’. The others agreed that Alan and Blake were free to do this, but Calum and David still wanted to pool their resources and pay for things collectively.

Unfortunately, Alan and Blake’s vegan business did not go well, due to the Covid closures and everyone working from home, and they were forced to close the cafe. Alan took the news badly and started drinking heavily. Sadly, he was hit by a fruit lorry on his way home from the pub one night. His will leaves his entire estate to the ‘Fur-ever Homes’ animal rescue charity.

Blake was left with a large amount of outstanding personal debts, due to the business failure, and he had no choice but to declare bankruptcy. Fidelity Finance have been named as his trustee in bankruptcy, and will ensure that his assets are used to pay back any creditors. Additionally, as he cannot afford to live in London any longer, he has decided to move back to the house in Newcastle.

Calum and David are still living in the house but are reluctant to allow Blake to move back in with them.

1. Explain how the estate would devolve in both legal and equitable title.
2. Advise Calum and David whether they should allow Blake to move back into the property.
3. Advise Calum and David as to whether there is any threat to their hold on the property, or whether any other interested party could force its sale.

PART B

Question 1

In 2013 Andy inherited the registered freehold of 24 Lane End, a four-storey townhouse, but the property felt too large for him to live in alone.

He decided to live on the ground floor and generate some income from the other floors. He made the following agreements:

• Ben (Andy’s best friend) occupied the 1^st floor in return for £200 per month for ‘1 year in the first instance’.
• Claire occupied the top floor in return for payment of £800 per month for a term of 6 years. This was written on a piece of paper, which they both signed, and entitled ‘licence agreement’.
• Denny lives on the 2^nd floor and works as a chef in Andy’s restaurant nearby. Denny moved into the house when he split from his partner and pays Andy £100 per week.

Andy has a key to the entire property but has ensured that he also has a copy of the keys for each floor’s separate entryway. He is a keen animal lover and has encouraged the others to have pets if they so wish. He occasionally uses his key to put out water and food for the pets and to take Ben’s dog for a walk.

Earlier this year Andy met Ethan and they fell in love. Andy is now considering selling number 24 in order to move into a smaller property with him.

Advise Andy as to whether he can sell the property free of the other parties’ interests or whether a future purchaser would be bound by any of the agreements he made.

OR

Question 2

Aleem and Barrie bought their dream house, Sunbeam Cottage in 2010, with the creation of a mortgage to Bonclays bank. In 2015 Barrie wanted to try opening an Art School. She had a conversation with Aleem, where she said she needed his support in the endeavour and that otherwise she would be eternally unhappy and unfulfilled. Aleem, feeling somewhat pressured, said that he would agree to a second mortgage on the house but that someone had advised him to get some financial advice first.

Barrie sent her cousin, Caz, who is a mortgage advisor, to advise Aleem that it was not that bad an idea and he signed for the second mortgage with Southern Stone bank.

Unfortunately, Aleem and Barrie have been experiencing financial difficulties and they are struggling to keep up with both mortgage repayments as Sunbeam Cottage was in too remote an area for students to regularly attend. As a result, they have missed 3 months’ worth of mortgage payments.

Their second bank, Southern Stone, have sent them a letter, telling them that there will be ‘no choice but to take serious measures’ in the event of continued non-payment.

Aleem and Barrie are concerned and come to you for advice.

Please advise them as to:

1. what steps the bank can take against them in relation to the repossession and sale of the property to satisfy the debt,
2. what they can do if they would like to remain in the property and pay off their arrears, and
3. whether any defences are available to either of them in such an action.