LAWS2204 Property

How LAWS2204 is assessed

What LAWS2204 covers

Nine doctrinal topics → one exam-ready map. Each links to its free chapter guide.

The subject runs on one answer spine: characterise the interest → order the parties in time → pick the rule → apply, with every step welded to a leading case and the correct NSW section (RPA 1900; Conveyancing Act 1919).

The final exam is 60% of your grade and carries a non-redeemable 50% hurdle — you must score at least 50% on the exam itself to pass the subject, so a strong research project cannot rescue a weak exam. This guide teaches each doctrine to exam standard: the test in elements, the case that owns it, and the section that pins it.

Worked example · free

The Torrens indefeasibility chain — the signature exam move, step by step

Key terms

Indefeasibility

The immunity a registered proprietor's title has from adverse claims under RPA s 42. In NSW (and Australia generally) it is immediate: a void or forged instrument, once registered, still confers good title (Frazer v Walker; Breskvar v Wall), subject only to the listed exceptions.

Legal vs equitable interest

A legal interest needs the right formality (an assurance by deed, CA s 23B); an equitable interest arises without it — from a specifically-enforceable agreement (Walsh v Lonsdale) or a trust. The distinction drives every priority dispute, because equity binds everyone except a bona fide purchaser of the legal estate for value without notice.

Fixture

A chattel that has become part of the land. Resolved by the fixtures test: the degree of annexation sets the presumption and the onus (Holland v Hodgson; Coroneo), but the object/purpose of annexation is decisive (Agripower) — was the thing attached for its own better enjoyment as a chattel, or for the permanent improvement of the land?

Postponing conduct

Conduct by the holder of an earlier interest that causes it to lose its “first in time” priority to a later interest — for example arming another with the indicia of title, or failing to caveat where that omission misleads (Rice v Rice; Heid v Reliance Finance). It is the key exception to first-in-time in a priority dispute.

Native title

Rights and interests in land and waters held under the traditional laws and customs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, recognised by the common law (Mabo (No 2)), surviving the Crown's radical title until validly extinguished, inalienable except to the Crown, and now regulated by the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).

LAWS2204 FAQ

Questions students ask in each LAWS2204 chapter

What's the difference between a fixture and a chattel, and why does it matter?

A fixture is a chattel that has become part of the land, so it passes with the land on sale and cannot be removed by a departing tenant; a chattel remains personal property. The test runs in order: the degree of annexation sets a presumption and fixes the onus (resting by its own weight = prima facie chattel; fixed by more than its weight = prima facie fixture, Holland v Hodgson; Coroneo), but the object or purpose of annexation is decisive (Agripower) — was the thing attached for its own better enjoyment as a chattel, or for the permanent improvement of the land? Chapter 01 · Concepts of Property

What is the difference between a legal and an equitable interest in land?

A legal interest is created with the required formality — for most interests, an assurance by deed (CA s 23B). An equitable interest arises without that formality, from a specifically-enforceable agreement (Walsh v Lonsdale) or a trust. The practical difference is in priority disputes: an equitable interest is defeated by a bona fide purchaser of the legal estate for value without notice, whereas a legal interest is harder to displace. Chapter 02 · Estates and Interests in Land

What does it mean that the Torrens system gives 'title by registration'?

It means title is acquired by the act of registration itself, not merely recorded after a valid transfer (Breskvar v Wall). The practical effect is that registration cures defects in the underlying instrument: even a void or forged transfer, once registered, confers a good title on the registered proprietor under s 42, subject only to the statutory exceptions. Chapter 03 · The Torrens System

Does knowing about an earlier unregistered interest make a registered title fraudulent?

No — mere notice is expressly not a defect (RPA s 43). To defeat indefeasibility for fraud you must show dishonesty brought home to the registered proprietor (Assets Co v Mere Roihi), which means pushing the conduct past carelessness, at least to wilful blindness, or showing a dishonest repudiation of an acknowledged prior interest (Bahr v Nicolay (No 2)). Knowledge alone, without a dishonest act, leaves the registered title intact. Chapter 04 · Exceptions to Indefeasibility

What is the basic rule for ranking competing unregistered interests?

Start with first in time: the interest created earlier prevails. But this is only the starting point. For competing equitable interests it applies only where the equities are equal (Rice v Rice), and in every case the earlier interest can be postponed if its holder engaged in conduct — such as arming another with the title documents or failing to caveat — that enabled or misled the later party (Heid v Reliance Finance). Chapter 05 · Priority Disputes

What is the difference between a lease and a licence, and how do I tell them apart?

A lease is a proprietary interest that binds third parties; a licence is only a personal permission. The decisive test is whether the grantee has a right of exclusive possession for a certain term (Radaich v Smith; Lace v Chantler). If they do, it is a lease however the document is labelled — substance prevails over form, so a paper headed “Licence” that in fact grants exclusive possession is still a lease. Chapter 06 · Leases

Does a mortgage transfer the land to the lender?

Not under Torrens. RPA s 57(1) provides that a mortgage “has effect as a security but does not operate as a transfer of the land” — it is a statutory charge. So the mortgagor remains the registered proprietor and keeps the equity of redemption (the right to redeem on payment); the mortgagee holds a registered charge with statutory remedies, not ownership of the land. Chapter 07 · Mortgages

What are the four characteristics of a valid easement?

From Re Ellenborough Park: (1) there must be a dominant and a servient tenement (no easement in gross); (2) the easement must accommodate — benefit — the dominant tenement as land, not the owner personally; (3) the two tenements must be owned or occupied by different persons (diversity); and (4) the right must be capable of forming the subject-matter of a grant (definite, and not amounting to exclusive possession of the servient land). Run them in order in a problem. Chapter 08 · Easements and Covenants

What did Mabo (No 2) actually decide?

It rejected the doctrine of terra nullius as the basis for acquiring the land and held that the common law of Australia recognises native title — rights and interests in land and waters held under traditional laws and customs. Native title survives the Crown's acquisition of radical (underlying) title until validly extinguished, its content is set by the relevant group's traditional laws and customs, and it is inalienable except to the Crown. Chapter 09 · Native Title

How to study for the exam

Because the exam is a 60% piece with a non-redeemable 50% hurdle, breadth of competence beats depth in one topic — you cannot afford a blank topic. Drill the Torrens core first (indefeasibility → exceptions → priorities): it carries the most slide-time and the most problem questions.

Master the two priority systems as separate machines — general-law (BFPVWN, notice, deeds) vs Torrens (caveats, s 43A, postponing conduct) — and decide which conveyancing world you are in before you pick a rule. Get the NSW section numbers exact; wrong-jurisdiction numbers signal you have not learned the statute.

In every problem, run the answer spine — characterise → sequence → pick the rule → apply — and spend marks on application, welding each step to a named case and the correct section.