Substitution or Amendment - Requisition Policy and Procedures

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Rejection Policy and Procedures

Warranty:

Where a registration officer is uncertain whether a requisition is appropriate, having taken account of the guidance offered in this manual and the examples on this page, the application should be referred to a senior caseworker.

General

There is limited scope for an applicant to substitute or amend the information in their application or for a registration officer to raise a requisition in respect of applications submitted on and after 8 December 2014. Section 34(1) provides that while an application for registration is pending:

“... the applicant —

(a) may withdraw it, but

(b) except with the consent of the Keeper, may not substitute it or amend it.”

This provision permits an applicant to submit additional evidence or documentation in limited circumstances. Consequently, it also limits the occasions when a registration officer may raise a requisition.

Although section 34(1)(b) indicates that the Keeper may consent to a substitution or amendment to the application, whether such consent can be given is subject to section 21(2) (for registration of a deed) or section 27(3) (for a voluntary registration). These state that the general application conditions and the conditions of registration must be met at the date of application. If those conditions are not met at the date of application, the Keeper is required to reject the application by sections 21(3) or 27(4).

Fundamentally, an applicant can submit additional information or deeds or an officer can raise a requisition only where the application already meets the general conditions and the conditions of registration applicable to the application type. Requisitions by a registration officer are restricted to matters that are evidential as to the position at the date of application. For example, if the registrable deed is invalid due to a defect (for example in the signing by the granter or required minimum content of the deed) then the application must be rejected, as no subsequent amendment can render it valid on the date of application.

Examples

Officer can make a requisition and applicant can submit further evidence

These examples are not intended to be definitive:

Where a search in the Register of Inhibitions discloses a potential adverse entry, the Keeper may require confirmation that the name match disclosed is not that of the party in question or that the entry is not capable of affecting the registrable deed;
Where the reinforcement of certain information or evidence that has been provided is desirable, for example, a disposition or lease of otherwise inalienable common good land is supported by reference to a court order permitting the transaction but the court order or a copy thereof is not supplied with the application.
Where evidence is submitted in support of a request to extend warranty, but further evidence is required;
Where evidence is submitted in support of a prescriptive claimant application under section 43, but further evidence is required;
Where a supporting deed or document has been submitted in error, it may be possible to substitute it for the correct one. For instance, where a deed has been referred to for burdens, but the wrong one has been submitted because more than one deed between those parties was recorded on the same day.

Officer may not requisition and applicant cannot submit further evidence

These examples are not intended to be definitive:

Where the deed to be registered has not been submitted;
Where the deed to be registered contains an error that strikes at its validity, e.g. parties are not named and designed, not signed by granter, deed plan unsigned or deed plan not docketed (and the plan cannot otherwise be clearly linked to the deed), deed has no acceptable operative words;
Where the applicant wishes to substitute a different version of the deed- for example they want to send in a new plan (even where the plan has been executed and even where the original deed submitted for registration contained no errors requiring rejection)- this 'new' deed is not the same deed as was submitted;
Where the execution requires to be self-evidencing, but is not e.g. deed not signed by witness, or witness is not named and designed;
Where applicant is non-natural person but insufficient information is provided to meet minimum designation requirement for proprietorship section or securities section of the title sheet;
Where the plan or description of the plot is such that the Keeper cannot delineate it on the cadastral map;
Where the plan or description of an encumbrance affecting part of the plot in the deed inducing registration is not sufficient for the Keeper to delineate it on the cadastral map;
Where a deed is referred to for burdens but is not submitted, and is not marked on the application form as a deed that the Keeper has already examined (and the subjects are not in a Research Area);
for a certified plan;
Where the plot to be registered, or any part of it, competes with an existing registered title;
Where the deed does not narrate the title number(s) of the title sheet(s) to which it relates - there is an exception where the execution of the deed is at a point where the title number may not have been known.

Requisition Period

Regulation 13 of the Rules provides that the applicant may substitute or amend their application before the expiry of 42 days beginning with the day after the date of consent (being the date of the requisition letter).

The registration officer has no discretion to extend this period, even on a request from the applicant or their agent suggesting that they consider exceptional circumstances apply. If an applicant realises that the particular requisition cannot be met within the period then they may choose to withdraw the application, since withdrawal and resubmission of the application with the appropriate evidence may then avoid the need for a limitation or exclusion of warranty. There is a fee for the withdrawal of an application for registration.

Requisition is not answered or evidence not provided

The action to be taken by a registration officer will vary depending upon the reason for which the requisition was made.

A requisition cannot be used to remedy a defect in the application that existed at the date of application where the defect is a breach of the general application conditions or conditions of registration. This means that failing to comply with a requisition should not commonly result in rejection. It is more likely that the failure to comply with a requisition would result in either a limitation or exclusion from warranty, or in the omission of certain matters from the title sheet.

In the case of confirmation regarding an ROI entry, the disclosure of the ROI entry in the title sheet may be required.

Requisition Procedure

Expiry of the standover period

When the standover period of 42 days expires, Microsoft Outlook will send the registration officer a reminder. They should assess whether the application can proceed. In certain cases, it may be necessary to consider a limitation or exclusion of warranty. Any limitation or exclusion must be authorised by a senior caseworker. In the case of lack of ROI evidence or failure to provide ROI evidence, the registration officer should proceed to register on the assumption that the apparently adverse entry could affect the validity of a deed undergoing registration and disclose the relevant information in the title sheet. In other cases, if the registration officer is uncertain of the approach to be adopted, a referral should be made to a senior caseworker to assess if a limitation or exclusion of warranty is necessary and also to authorise the terms of such a limitation or exclusion.

The registration officer will need to take the application on in their own name at the appropriate location and update the standover log to reflect the outcome of the requisition.

Placing case in standover

Complete and issue a requisition letter using the appropriate style letter available in LRS.
Complete and send requisition email to the submitting agent, where an email address has been provided.
Calculate when the 42 day period of standover will come to an end, starting with the date after the date of the requisition letter. For the avoidance of doubt, weekends should be included when calculating this period;
Add the title number of the application(s) in question to the date on which the 42 day period expires in their Microsoft Calendar, to serve as a reminder to the officer of when the 42 day standover period expires;
Enter the relevant details in the standover log held on the Cool-Ice system;
Release the application(s) to standover 42 days on LRS. This ensures that the application(s) will be automatically released from standover when the 42 period expires, eliminating the risk of the application(s) staying in standover after the expiry date;
Place the application(s) on the designated standover shelf for their area/team.

Requisition Letters

LR07 - Prescriptive Claimants

LR16 - Extended Warranty

LR21 - ROI

LR27 - Free text Letter

Requisition Email

The requisition email should follow the format below. The fact an e-mail has been sent should be noted on the copy of the letter being held with the application. If no e-mail address is provided the fact that an e-mail has not been sent should be noted on the copy letter.

Your Ref:
Title No.
Subjects:

Please note for information: this email is to notify you that in terms of Regulation 13 of the Land Register Rules etc. (Scotland) Regulations 2014 this office has issued a letter to you for the purpose of requisitioning additional evidence in respect of the above application. For the avoidance of doubt, this letter is not attached and will be sent separately to this advisory e-mail. You are asked to note that a response to this letter should be submitted within 42 days of the date shown on the letter.

Please do not reply to this email.

Response received during 42 day period

If the registration officer receives a response to the requisition during the standover period, they must assess whether it is sufficient to allow the application to proceed. If the registration officer is uncertain whether the case can proceed based on the evidence then a referral may be made to their referral officer. The application can be removed from standover using the standover controller permission in LRS and take on the case in their own name on LRS.

The standover log should be updated to record the action of removing the application(s) from standover.