Section 52, Law of Property Act 1925

Section 52 of the LPA 1925 states that any conveyance of land or an interest in land is void unless it’s made in writing and, in most instances, by deed. There are a few limited exceptions to this.

The Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989, Section 1 stipulates the form the deed must take, so a transaction must also be correct in this regard to be legal.

For the above reasons agreements in relation to land are said to need to be confirmed in writing and ‘signed, sealed and delivered’. In practise that means in writing, dated, and witnessed. 

We encounter many land disputes including where there might be a contract but not a deed. This can give rise to trust of land disputes, trespass and/or estoppel arguments and a lack of a deed does not mean there is no claim, it simply means there is no registrable document that can be filed with land registry.