In the first of our weekly series exploring issues related to post-completion, Priscilla Sinder and Maria Hardy from the PCC Education Hub share an overview of notices. Every Tuesday for the next eight weeks, the duo will share insight and advice related to post-completion topics. If you have any questions related to post-completion for Priscilla and Maria, email them to press@todaysconveyancer.co.uk.
This article aims to provide a synopsis of the nature of what a notice is as defined under the Land Registration Act 2002, its purpose and the two forms in which it can be identified in a register.
Definition
A notice is an entry made in the register in respect of the burden of an interest affecting a registered estate or charge (section 32(1) Land Registration Act 2002).
Notices are usually registered in the Charges Register (rules 9(a) and 84(1) of the Land Registration Rules 2003), however an exception to this is a bankruptcy notice, which is registered in the Proprietorship Register.
Purpose
A notice entered in the register in respect of a third-party interest will protect its priority against any subsequent registrable disposition for value and will only ensure that the priority of the interest protected will not be automatically postponed on the registration of a subsequent registrable disposition for value.
The effect of a notice is limited and does not guarantee that the interest protected is valid.
A notice will only ensure that the priority of the interest protected will not be automatically postponed on the registration of a subsequent registrable disposition for value.
Various forms of notices
Registered notices appear in two forms: either as an agreed notice, or as a unilateral notice. The choice of notice you make depends on the circumstances of the case, as there is no difference in priority between a unilateral notice and an agreed notice.
- Agreed notice.
An agreed notice can only be entered in the register either:
- by or with the consent of the relevant proprietor (or someone entitled to be registered as such)
- if the applicant can satisfy HM Land Registry that the interest claimed is valid by supplying supporting evidence.
HM Land Registry is not required to serve notice on the registered proprietor before registering an agreed notice, but will always notify the registered proprietor after registration if their consent to the notice was not provided with the initial application.
This type of notice will only be cancelled if HM Land Registry is satisfied that the protected interest has come to an end or that the interest claimed is not valid.
An application to register an agreed notice must be made using form AN1 and be accompanied by the appropriate fee. Panel 3 of the form must be completed to show whether your application affects the whole or part only of the registered title involved. If your application affects part of the registered title, you must include a detailed plan identifying the affected area.
If the application is made by or with the consent of someone entitled to be the registered proprietor, evidence of that entitlement must be submitted also.
Where an application is not made by or with the consent of the relevant registered proprietor(s), it must be accompanied by sufficient evidence to confirm the validity of the claim (rule 81(1)(c) of the Land Registration Rules 2003).
- Unilateral notice:
A unilateral notice may be entered without the consent of a registered proprietor. The applicant does not need to satisfy HM Land Registry of the validity of the interest claimed or provide evidence.
The registered proprietor will not receive notice of the application before registration takes place, although they will be notified once registration is complete. The registered proprietor therefore cannot object to the application prior to its registration but can apply to cancel the unilateral notice after it has been registered.
If a cancellation application is received this will prompt HM Land Registry to contact the person claiming the benefit of the notice, asking them to prove the validity of the claim. It is at this point that the person claiming a benefit of the notice must prove the validity of their claim.
An application to register a unilateral notice must be made using form UN1 and be accompanied by the relevant fee. Panel 3 of the form must be completed to show whether your application affects the whole or part only of the registered title involved. If your application affects part of the registered title, you must include a detailed plan identifying the affected area.
Details of the nature of the interest claimed must be set out in panel 11 of the form UN1 if the applicant is making the statement or panel 12 if a conveyancer is giving a certificate on behalf of the applicant. If there is more than one applicant, and they choose to give a statement, that statement must be given by all applicants.
The statement or certificate should explain the applicant’s interest in full with evidence being supplied. For example referring to a written agreement without supplying the same will not be acceptable. No further evidence is necessary, but if supplied it will be retained and referred to in the notice. If retained this document will be open to public inspection, unless it is documented as an ‘exempt information document’.
Any unilateral notice application must confirm who is to be named in the entry as beneficiary of the notice and provide their address for service.
How to cancel/remove notices from the register
Cancellation of an agreed notice: The application must be made using form CN1, anyone can make an application, but it must be accompanied by evidence to satisfy HM Land Registry that the interest protected has come to an end. There is usually no fee for this type of application unless the application is to reflect the determination of an unregistered lease.
Cancellation of a unilateral notice: Only the registered proprietor(s) of the estate to which the notice relates, or someone entitled to be the registered proprietor, may apply to cancel a unilateral notice. If someone entitled to be proprietor makes the application, they must supply evidence to prove their entitlement.
An application made to cancel a unilateral notice must be made using form UN4, and there is no fee for this service. When a UN4 application is received, HM Land Registry will serve notice on the beneficiary of the notice and allow 15 working days for them to object to the cancellation. Any dispute about whether a notice should be cancelled or not, that cannot be resolved by agreement, will be referred to the tribunal.
Removal of a unilateral notice: A unilateral notice can be ‘removed’ using form UN2. This is only to be used where the beneficiary of the notice applies to withdraw it.
If the benefit of the notice has passed to someone else, you must apply to amend the unilateral notice using form UN3, and provide the relevant fee. The application must be accompanied by evidence of the new applicant’s claim to become beneficiary. The existing beneficiary should, where possible, sign the UN3 form or consent to the applicant.
Conclusion
There are two main ways that one can protect their interest as a registered proprietor or who is entitled to be the registered proprietor and consent is not the relevant factor. Thus, evidence of a notice does not necessarily prove the validity of an interest, however if there is any objection to a notice the beneficiary of that notice must prove its validity.
On this note the effect of a notice is limited; despite this caveat an understanding of the nature of a notice will guide and protect your client further in a situation where a substantial application cannot be submitted and it allows one to always navigate and act in their client’s best interest.
Source of material:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/land-registration-practice-guides
Licence: This content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0
About the authors
Priscilla Sinder qualified as a solicitor in 2005 and began her career in private practice. She moved into an in-house role soon after qualification and was appointed as manager of residential conveyancing and then head of post-completion. With the diverse experience obtained she gained a role as a partner of a boutique property firm in central London, leading to her final role as a practicing solicitor in a large nationwide conveyancing firm as a director. Throughout her career she always noticed post-completion departments lacked resources and the attention they deserved. In a bid to change this, the seed for PCC was planted in 2017 where Priscilla embarked on a journey to change the way post-completion was viewed by the industry. This then gave rise to the birth of the Hub in 2024. Priscilla is also the author of Client Care in Conveyancing and co-author of Post-completion: A Conveyancer’s Guide to Process, Risk and Compliance, 1st Edition, published by the Law Society.
Maria Hardy is the company trainer and technical specialist at the PCC Education Hub. She has 20 years’ experience in the residential conveyancing profession, the majority of which has been spent focusing on post-completion duties. Maria started her career in 2005 after completing her LLB at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Prior to working at the hub, her early career was spent working in professional negligence, and from 2014 to 2023 Maria was head of post-completion and the compliance officer for a large residential conveyancing firm. She then became manager at PCC from 2023 – 2024. Maria’s vast experience allows her to specialise in post-completion, risk, compliance and training.
