Escheat meaning

Rock Ferry Waterfront Trust v Pennistone Holdings Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 1029 What are the practical implications of this case? The circumstances of this case may seem, to some at least, somewhat unusual. Yet they are the kind of facts that are liable to arise in practice more often than might first appear. From the judgment two key principles can be drawn: firstly, where a company not incorporated under the laws of England and Wales is dissolved at a time when it owns property situated in England and Wales, section 1012 of the Companies Act 2006 (the bona vacantia provisions) does not apply. Nonetheless, the company’s incorporation in another jurisdiction does not prevent English law from governing what then happens to the land. Under English law, the land escheats to the Crown and the freehold previously vested in the dissolved company is extinguished. The Crown can subsequently sell the land to a third party; upon that sale a new freehold interest in the land is...

Introduction This Practice Note outlines and explains, in particular, escheat, bona vacantia (ownerless property) and the power of the Crown, or a Royal Duchy, to disclaim bona vacantia on the dissolution of a company where the relevant asset is a freehold estate in land. It further addresses the impact and consequences of a disclaimer of onerous freehold land by a liquidator, a trustee in bankruptcy, or the Official Receiver. Escheat Paramount lordship of the Crown The doctrine of escheat has its roots in the long-standing feudal arrangements for holding land. Within that framework, all land across England, Wales and Northern Ireland is, in the last resort, held by the Crown: this is the principle of paramount lordship. Nevertheless, others may hold a legal estate in land; the more modern expression of this appears in section 1 of the Law of Property Act 1925 (LPA 1925), which recognises freehold (and leasehold) estates. A person entitled to one of these estates enjoys the incidents of ‘ownership’ as that...

Bona vacantia denotes ‘ownerless goods’. Under section 1012 of the Companies Act 2006 (CA 2006), any assets not otherwise disposed of and still held by a company at the time of a company’s dissolution pass to the Crown as bona vacantia. This Practice Note examines the enforcement of security—whether by a mortgagee’s sale or by appointing a receiver—over property that has vested in the Crown bona vacantia, following dissolution. It addresses bona vacantia property, disclaimer, escheat, the role of the Crown/Government Legal Department and the HM Land Registry’s guidance. It looks at these matters collectively and in an overview. How is a company struck off? Broadly, a company can be struck off the register of companies in two ways: voluntarily, on an application by the directors by the Registrar of Companies—the Registrar may strike off and dissolve companies the Registrar considers are not carrying on business Often, this will be because the company has failed to file required statutory information by...

ARCHIVED: This Practice Note has been archived and is not maintained The Property case tracker brings together all key 2022 judgments that we regard as relevant to property lawyers, presented in reverse chronological order. Cases appear in reverse chronological order, with the most recent decisions first. The tracker adopts the following definitions: AST: assured shorthold tenancy CVA: company voluntary arrangement FTT: First-tier Tribunal HMO: house in multiple occupation LPA: local planning authority NPPF: National Planning Policy Framework RRO: rent repayment order RTM: right to manage TCC: Technology and Construction Court UT: Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) VTE: Valuation Tribunal for England See also the Property key future developments tracker, which follows the progress and outcome of appeal cases and their results; by contrast, this document offers a summary of all cases we consider pertinent to property lawyers generally, from 2022, in this field. See further: Property case tracker—2021 Property case...