Anonymous: What is the best way to deal with a form LL restriction where the registered proprietors have died and the executors are selling?
Adam: A Form LL restriction has to be complied with even following the death of the actual owners. Probate will be required for the ‘last owner to die’ in the normal way. The restriction will then apply to the executor(s) as named in the probate. A conveyancer will then have to confirm the executor(s) identity and provide the certificate required by the Form LL wording.
Anonymous: Mr and Mrs X owned a property in their joint names as joint tenants and later they severed the joint tenancy and made Wills. Mrs X died first and left her 50% share of the property in a life interest trust for benefit of Mr X and thereafter to her 2 children in equal shares. Mr X died and his 50% share was left under his will to his daughter. The question as to ownership of the property was only referred to us on the death of Mr X and nothing was documented after Mrs X's passing. We now have grants of probate for both Mr and Mrs X's estates. The daughter holds 75% of the property and son owns 25%. The daughter wishes to buy out her brother's share. I have prepared 2 separate AS1s - one for each estate and a TR1 to deal with the sale of the quarter share. Will this be effective for registering the property in the sole name of the daughter?
Adam: We register the legal ownership and whilst ‘severance’ can lead to joint owners applying to register, for example, a Form A/joint ownership restriction, the wills and beneficial shares don’t form part of the land register.
When Mrs X died the legal ownership passed to Mr X, irrespective of whether they were joint tenants or tenants in common. Nothing would be ‘documented’ with us other than perhaps her death, although that’s not necessary as it is sadly factual and can be proven at any time when the register is updated.
The legal ownership is always dealt with as a whole so you can’t have two assents re % shares of the beneficial ownerships of Mr & Mrs X. Probate is not required for Mrs X as the legal ownership of the property did not form part of her estate. However it is required for Mr X as the property does form part of his estate.
To update the register with the daughter as the sole legal and beneficial owner we would require a form AP1, certified copies of Mr X’s probate and Mrs X’s death certificate or probate, and a transfer of the whole legal ownership by the executor(s) for Mr X to the daughter.
