The Torrens system is a land registration system developed in Australia in 1857. It operates on a “title by registration” basis, requiring registration before a title is issued. The system has been successful in resolving property disputes and has been adopted by other countries, including the Dominican Republic and some US states.
The Torrens system is a type of land registration system developed in Australia by Sir Robert Torrens in 1857, modeled in part on the methods used in the United Kingdom for the registration of merchant ships. Titles and state registers, according to the “title by registration” principle, are the hallmark of a Torrens system for registration of deeds. Upon transferring a property into a Torrens system, the new owner’s name is listed on a state or government registry and appropriate title is issued. The owner’s legal claim to the property is deemed valid until a new owner demonstrates proof of proper sale and transfer and then adds their name to the register.
Unlike a deed registration system, which operates on a “registration by title” basis, a system that requires proof of title before registration, the Torrens system requires registration before a title is issued. Titles are released to new owners upon successful transfer from the previously registered owner. Historical records of previous owners may be maintained in a torrent-based system, but do not form the basis for the granting of registered title. Rather than an owner showing proof of proper deed, ownership is established and legally validated by the appearance of the owner’s name on the state register. Establishing a legal claim to ownership simply requires proof of the owner’s name on the register.
Prior to the Torrens system, landowners in Australia were required to maintain complex transfer documents on their land, showing the chain of ownership back to the origin of ownership, or root of title. The documents could go back several generations, presenting a difficult record-keeping proposition for owners and allowing unscrupulous individuals ample opportunity for forgery. With the introduction of the system developed by Sir Robert Torrens, the state maintained a centralized record of deeds and current owners, including maps of registered parcels. The Torrens system required less expensive searches and questionable registrations. Title transfer deeds and deeds could not be forged to prove ownership, ending lengthy disputes between the claimants.
Australian common law practices regarding title deeds prior to the Real Property Act 1886 resulted in the loss of several land grants in Australia. The growing problem of property disputes and lost grants has spawned the development of a more systematic and government-controlled solution. Sir Robert Torrens’ system of records and titles has been so successful in resolving such property disputes and questionable practices that other territories and countries have adopted a similar system. For example, the Dominican Republic started its own Torrens system in the 1920s. Several US states, including Georgia, North Carolina, and New York, still use similar title systems and land laws.
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