LSE: Property Law Exam Paper

In 2019, Alice purchased the freehold of Greenacre, a large house with extensive gardens. The transfer contained the following covenants: (i) not to use the property for any business purpose; (ii) to maintain the boundary hedge at a height of no more than 2 metres; and (iii) to contribute £500 annually towards the maintenance of the private road serving several properties including Greenacre. In 2020, Alice sold Greenacre to Bob. The transfer to Bob made no mention of the covenants. In 2021, Bob sold to Claire, and their contract specifically stated that Claire would be bound by 'all existing covenants affecting the property'. Claire now wishes to: (a) operate a small pottery business from a converted garage; (b) allow the hedge to grow to 3 metres for privacy; and (c) refuse to pay the annual road maintenance contribution. The original covenantee was David, who owned the neighbouring property Blueacre in 2019 but sold it to Emma in 2020. Emma is seeking to enforce the covenants against Claire. Advise Emma on the enforceability of each covenant.

"The decision in Stack v Dowden represents a radical departure from established principles of resulting trust law and has created more problems than it has solved in determining beneficial ownership of the family home." Discuss.

Three years ago, Oliver, the registered proprietor of Blackacre, granted the following interests: (a) A 99-year lease to Peter for use as a restaurant, with Peter paying a premium of £50,000. Peter immediately sub-let the premises to Queen for 10 years. Queen has operated a successful restaurant but has never registered her lease. (b) A legal easement of way over the driveway to Rachel, owner of the adjoining property Whiteacre, to access the main road. This easement was never registered. (c) An equitable mortgage to Sam (a private lender) over the whole property to secure a loan of £100,000. Sam did not register his mortgage. Last month, Oliver sold and transferred Blackacre to Tom, who paid £300,000 and had no actual knowledge of any of these interests. Tom's solicitor conducted standard searches but found no entries on the register relating to Blackacre except Oliver's proprietorship. Tom now wishes to use Blackacre as his family residence and is seeking possession against Queen, wants to prevent Rachel from using the driveway, and refuses to acknowledge Sam's mortgage. Advise Tom on his position regarding each interest, and advise the respective parties on their rights.

"The expansion of proprietary estoppel in recent decades has blurred the distinction between contractual and property rights, creating an unprincipled discretionary remedy that undermines the certainty required in property law." Critically analyse this statement.