Candidate Number: Click here to enter text.

ANSWER BOOKLET
LAW: LAND LAW JUNE 2023 EXAM

(Please add candidate number

CANDIDATE NUMBER eg C 12345678 – also add to top right corner of
Answer Booklet)
(Please add word count for the three answers eg
WORD COUNT
5,200)

EXAM DATE 14 JUNE 2023

Before submitting this Answer Booklet please ensure that you have complied
with the student instructions issued prior to the exam. In particular; you must
type your answers below each of the three questions selected and put your
candidate number (NOT your name) in the top right corner of each page of this
Answer Booklet.

Once completed your Answer Booklet must be saved under a file name of your
candidate number and subject code eg C1234567 LAN and then uploaded to
the Exam course on ELITE (Blackboard) by attaching your Answer Booklet file
following the on screen instructions.

DECLARATION
By submitting this assessment, I declare that:

 This Foundation Subject examination was carried out in accordance with the
Regulations of The University of Law. I certify that this is my own unaided
work and, if this statement is untrue, I ACKNOWLEDGE that I have
cheated.

 The work is original except where indicated by acknowledgement or special

reference in the text. This examination has been undertaken without the
assistance of any other person; is treated as confidential and I have not
disclosed, discussed, or expressed an opinion on the contents of this
examination or my answers to it to any other person, by any means; and will
not copy or reproduce the contents of this examination or any part thereof.

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LAND LAW
INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES

Where questions are sub-divided, candidates should not expect the sub-divisions
necessarily to be of equal weight.

You must answer THREE questions out of SIX

You may refer to your GDL Statutory Extracts.

Candidates should assume that the title to any land referred to is REGISTERED
unless the contrary is stated.

There is a maximum word limit of 6,000. Words in excess of this limit will not
be marked.
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QUESTION 1

Sorcha was the registered proprietor of a large country estate in Buckinghamshire. In

2014, she transferred a parcel of land on the northern part of the estate to Jeremy.
The transfer included an old chapel building which Jeremy planned to use to host
humanist wedding ceremonies.

By deed, Jeremy covenanted with Sorcha:

1. not to serve alcohol in the chapel;

2. to provide Sorcha with a monthly basket of seasonal fruit picked from the
chapel’s garden; and
3. to maintain a dry-stone wall on the boundary between his and Sorcha’s land.

After suffering losses during the pandemic, in 2022 Jeremy sold his land to Felix,
who provided an indemnity covenant at the time of the transfer.

Earlier this year, Sorcha exchanged contracts with Lola, a neighbouring farmer, to
transfer a barn on the eastern part of her estate. Sorcha and Lola have not yet
signed the transfer deed, but Lola has started taking her llamas to the barn at sunset
to sleep.

Two months ago, Sorcha decided to go travelling and transferred the remainder of
her estate to her sister, Naeve. As Sorcha was in a hurry, they completed the
paperwork without legal advice.

Naeve has discovered that Felix is hosting music gigs at the chapel and serving
alcohol to attendees, who congregate noisily outside and have damaged the
boundary wall. Felix is also refusing to provide Naeve with fruit baskets, stating that
he doesn’t knowing anything about gardening.

On an evening walk, Naeve heard unusual noises coming from the barn and was
shocked to find six sleeping llamas.

Advise Naeve:

a. whether she has any possible causes of action in respect of covenants

1, 2 & 3 and any remedies that may be available.

b. as to the likely nature of Lola’s interest in the barn.

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QUESTION 2

Femi, a bank manager for Swift Building Society, has approached you for advice in
respect of one of Swift’s customers, Blake.

Blake is the registered proprietor of a Victorian textiles factory in Brighton which he

purchased and renovated with the aid of a mortgage of £500,000 from Forrests Bank
Plc. The mortgage was made by deed and registered promptly after its creation in
December 2019.

Blake’s vision for the factory was to create a vibrant and dynamic space for local
artists and pop up enterprises. In August 2021, he entered into two written
agreements with Lucinda and Flash to occupy three adjoining rooms on the second
floor of the factory for a monthly rent of £800 for two years.

Lucinda and Flash approached Blake separately and signed agreements a week
apart. Lucinda runs a pottery school and Flash is an upcoming artist. They are each
responsible for their own rent. The agreement was headed “Licence Agreement” and
states that Lucinda and Flash can occupy any of the three rooms and reserves the
right for Blake to introduce other licensees and freely re-enter and use the rooms for
factory events. Blake plans to host a light installation exhibition later this month
which will use every room in the factory.
 
In December last year, Blake sampled some vegan bakes created by Pedro at a
Christmas market. He was so impressed that he offered his newly refurbished first
floor kitchen to Pedro to run a vegan café. Pedro was very enthusiastic about the
proposal and agreed to try it out for a year, paying £450 per month. The agreement
was not recorded in writing.

In January this year, Blake borrowed £100,000 from Swift Building Society to fund
the conversion of the factory’s basement into a nightclub. The mortgage was made
by deed and registered shortly after its creation.

For the last four months, Blake has not made his loan repayments to the Swift
Building Society.

Advise Femi, explaining the relevant legal issues as to:

a) the nature of the other interests in the factory and whether Swift will be
affected by them; and

b) the most appropriate remedies available to Swift in the event that it

wishes to continue the mortgage

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QUESTION 3

In 1995, Sara granted Oscar a 30-year lease of a book shop in Margate at a quarterly
rent of £2,000.

In the lease, Oscar covenanted with Sara:

1. to supply Sara with a free copy of the shop’s reading group’s book every
month
2. to pay the rent;
3. not to use the property for any purpose other than a book shop; and
4. not to assign the lease without Sara’s permission.

In 2010, Sara sold the freehold to Caroline. Caroline joined the shop’s reading group
and continued to receive complimentary copies of the reading group’s books.

Last year, in accordance with covenant 4, Caroline consented to Oscar’s assignment

of the remainder of the lease to Marnie.

After Oscar’s departure there was a downturn in sales at the bookshop. Marnie, a
qualified beautician, decided to stop selling books and start a nail and beauty salon
at the shop.

Last month, Caroline became concerned after noticing that she had not received any
books from Marnie for over 6 months and she had missed her last rental payment on
the shop. She visited the shop and was unhappy to discover the salon and the use
of strong-smelling toxic chemicals on the premises.

Advise Caroline:

a. As to the actions that arise in relation to covenants 1, 2 & 3 and any

suitable remedies that are available.
b. How (if at all) would your answer differ if the lease had been granted in
2000?

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QUESTION 4

In May 2020, five university friends Aaron, Bobbi, Caitlyn, Dexter and Erez each paid
£5,000 to buy the registered freehold title to a farm outbuilding in Somerset. The
friends shared a passion for sustainable farming and planned to run an indoor
mushroom farm as a partnership. The transfer provided that the friends would hold
the property as beneficial joint tenants.

The business proved a hit and soon started to generate healthy profits. In February
2021, Bobbi mortgaged her share of the property (by deed) to raise funds to pursue
an offshoot microgreen farming project. Later that summer, during a solo expedition
to the Amazon rainforest, Bobbi sadly died in a climbing accident. In her valid will,
Bobbi left her share of the property to Aaron.

Shortly afterwards, Aaron made some unwise investments in cryptocurrency and was
declared bankrupt. He obtained professional advice and with the support of his
family, the bankruptcy was discharged at the end of the year.

In early 2022, tensions grew between Caitlyn and the rest of the group in respect of
the direction of the business, with Caitlyn wanting to pursue more lucrative contracts
nationally and the others preferring to supply locally. To resolve the dispute, Erez
agreed to purchase Caitlyn’s share in the property in February. They instructed
solicitors to draw up the paperwork and the sale was subsequently completed.

Later that spring while out foraging, Caitlyn unfortunately ingested a poisonous
mushroom and died. Caitlyn left everything in a valid will to her mother.

In summer 2022, Erez learned that his girlfriend was expecting their first child. When
sharing the news with Dexter, Erez discussed how he wanted his child to inherit his
share of the business. Dexter revealed he also had been contemplating his future
and no longer wanted to be involved in the business. Dexter offered to sell his share
to Erez but before the paperwork was prepared, Dexter sadly died in a car accident.
He left his share of the property to his brother Freddie.

After the tragic events of the last few years Erez wishes to sell the property and start
a new family business. Aaron opposes Erez’s plans and wishes to continue to run
the mushroom farm from the outbuilding.

(a) Explain how the legal estate and equitable interests in the outbuilding
were held initially and how they have devolved since the purchase of the
property.

(b) Advise whether Aaron can be forced to sell the outbuilding.

(c) If the outbuilding is sold, would a buyer be bound by any interests which
might subsist in the property?

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QUESTION 5

Oliver is the registered proprietor of a vast woodland in Cheshire. In 1998 he

constructed 50 holiday lodges and transferred them to his brother Tim. The transfer
deed provided that the water pipes servicing the lodges could pass over Oliver’s
retained land. In 2002 Tim erected four greenhouses to provide organic produce for
the lodges’ restaurant.

In 2012 Oliver built two cabins, “The Lakehouse” and “The Boathouse”, overlooking
the lake at the centre of the woodland. He moved to live in The Lakehouse and
transferred The Boathouse to his parents. Both cabins are accessible by the main
driveway but after moving in, his parents started to use a scenic footpath which
crosses The Lakehouse and leads into the neighbouring village. Oliver’s father
suffered mobility problems and the main driveway was strewn with dangerous
potholes. Oliver had used this footpath regularly during the build of the cabins.

Over lockdown visits to the woodland soared, boosted by a series of successful

nature trails based on popular children’s books. Earlier this year, Oliver sold the
woodland, including The Lakehouse, to Woodland Adventures, a UK based leisure
company.

Woodland Adventures intends to target the lucrative Christmas market by installing a

winter light trail. This will involve transporting large vehicles and equipment into the
woodland, which would be easiest via Tim’s land as it has direct access to the main
road. Tim opposes this as it will be disruptive for his guests and he is also concerned
by Woodland Adventures’ plans to erect treehouses to the south of his land as they
will block light to the greenhouses.

Woodland Adventures have threatened to cut the water supply to the lodges if Tim
does not agree to their plans. They have also fenced off Oliver’s parents’ access to
the lakeside path and installed a sign stating that tickets must be shown to gain
access.

Advise whether:

(a) Woodland Adventures can:

i. cut the water supply to Tim’s lodges
ii. charge Oliver’s parents to access the lakeside path

(b) Tim can stop Woodland Adventures:

a. accessing his land to install the light trail;
b. building the tree houses

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QUESTION 6

Evie is the registered proprietor of Daffodil House, a large Victorian property in a

picturesque village in Wales. The house was purchased in 2010 in Evie’s sole name
as her partner David had a poor credit rating. Nonetheless David and Evie agreed
that the Beeches would be their “forever home” and David, a retired builder,
undertook significant renovations to it on this basis.
During the renovations, David and Evie decided to realise their longstanding ambition
of opening a guesthouse. David created a luxurious executive suite by installing an
antique bathroom suite and used fine woods to build wardrobes and a dressing table.
He also constructed a wooden summerhouse at the bottom of the garden.
Clara, Evie’s rear neighbour, wishes to build stables in her garden and is in the
process of pursing planning permission. In the event that the permission is granted,
Clara plans to build part of the stables on a disused strip of land at the bottom of
Evie’s garden. Evie has granted Clara an option to purchase the strip of land at any
time in the next two years.
Earlier this year, Evie let the summerhouse to Lana, an American novelist with a
young family who wanted somewhere peaceful to write. She agreed in writing to pay
£350 per month to have exclusive occupation of the summer house for 2 years.
Evie and David subsequently separate and David moved in with Clara. Evie
struggles to run the guesthouse alone and discusses her concerns with one of her
regular guests, Georgia. Georgia makes Evie a lucrative offer to purchase Daffodil
House as she has always loved it.

(a) Advise Georgia on the following issues:

i. whether David, Clara and Lana have any rights over Daffodil
House and, if so, whether those rights would be binding on her if
she purchased the property;
ii. how would your advice differ if the title to Daffodil House was
unregistered.

(b) The sale proceeds and Georgia is registered as the new proprietor of
Daffodil House. Two weeks later, David attends at the property
demanding that Georgia return the bathroom and bedroom furniture
from the executive suite and the summer house.
Advise whether Georgia is entitled to keep:
i. the bathroom suite and bedroom furniture;
ii. the summer house.

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