First-Tier Tribunal Property Chamber

What is the First-Tier Tribunal Property Chamber?

In 2013 the First Tier-Tribunal Property Chamber took over the role of the Land Registry Adjudicator.

The Land Registry Adjudicator was created in 2003 as an independent judicial body made up of barristers and solicitors who specialised in property law. The role of the Adjudicator was to determine disputed applications made to the Land Registry which previously would have unfolded as lengthy and expensive County Court hearings.

The Land Registration Division of the First-Tier Tribunal’s Property Chamber now carries out the functions of the Adjudicator and has had a significant impact on Land Registration proceedings.  

How and why is a case referred to the FTT?

To meet the demands of the Land Registration Act 2002, the First-Tier Tribunal accepts referrals from HM Land Registry (“HMLR”), where applications for adverse possession, alterations or rectifications to the register, or boundary determination have been objected to and the parties have been unable to be resolve the issues between them.  

An important point to note is that the FTT can only deal with the exact point that has been referred to it by HMLR. It is not open to either the judge or the parties to widen out the issues, such as to include land or boundaries not included in the original application made to the HMLR.

Further in some situations it can be decided that the County Court is the better forum than the FTT and the matter is passed to the County Court. 

What happens once a case is referred to the FTT?

Once a case is accepted by the FTT it will send out orders for the parties to comply with which will include but is not limited to the following to be served at the FTT and exchanged between parties:

  • Statement of Case
  • Important Documents
  • Witness Statements

Once these documents and any other documents requested by the FTT have been filed the FTT will allocate a time and date for the site visit and hearing.

What is the benefit of the FTT?

One of the biggest benefits of the FTT is that cases are overseen by expert Judges who have backgrounds in property law and who take a proactive role in managing the cases. This is extremely helpful and has the added benefit of streamlining the whole process making it a lot quicker that most court proceedings.  

Further preparation for Tribunal hearings are usually more succinct and less convoluted than those required for court hearings and the volume of papers for the final hearing is usually smaller with FTT guidance requiring hearing bundle to be less than 500 pages if possible, which is very small compared to court bundles.

Another benefit is that the Judge will usually carry out a site visit prior to the hearing, attended by the parties and their legal representatives. This is to give the judge a better sense of the matter and exactly what is happening on the ground and is an invaluable part of FTT practice as site visits are extremely rare in County Court proceedings. 

Finally the FTT also have their own mediation service. Mediation can be a great way to resolve disputes and save on both costs and time. An FTT Judge can, after the Statement of Case is served, refer the matter to mediation if they consider the case to be suitable.

What is the outcome of a FTT Hearing?

In terms of outcomes, the FTT does not have the authority to award damages or remedies like injunctions. However, the Judge will make an order to HMLR to give effect to, or cancel, the applicant’s application, either in full or in part.

At the end of proceedings, the FTT aims to have decided on the merits, or lack thereof, presented by each party. This means that where the original application is for title to land through adverse possession the application will either be fully, or partially, upheld or discarded.

How we can help?

We have acted in a number of cases that have been referred to the FTT.

If you have an application which has been referred to the FTT and would like some advice we can help. Contact us today on 0333 344 5012 or email info@fleetlaw.co.uk

Notable Cases:

  • Andrew Tutton v Kingston, Property Chamber, Land Registration First-Tier Tribunal – Ref/2022/0181 [2023]

Fleet Law acted for Mr Tutton who’s his application for title to unregistered land was objected to and referred to the FTT. Fleet Law were successful in representing Mr Tutton at the FTT and Mr Tutton was awarded title. The full details can be found on our notable cases page.

  • Pauline Climpson and Patricia Whitehead v Philip Bush, Property Chamber, Land Registration First-Tier Tribunal – Ref 2022/0344 [2023]

Fleet Law acted for Ms Climpson and Ms Whitehead who were successfully awarded title by the FTT. The full details can be found on our notable cases page.