p. 252. Personal and Property Rights in Land
- Emma LeesEmma LeesLecturer in Environmental and Property Law, University of Cambridge
Abstract
This chapter explains the nature of land as a legal concept, as well as the nature of rights in land. Land includes both corporeal things — such as land and buildings — and incorporeal things, such as rights over land. Property rights in relation to land come in two forms: estates and interests. Estates are rights which a person holds in their ‘own land’, while interests are rights which a person holds in relation to another's land. Both of these are proprietary; proprietary interests are those rights which are capable of having third party effects. Therefore, the crucial distinction between personal and property rights is about the effect that these rights can have on third parties. The chapter then looks at the numerus clausus (closed list) of property rights. If a right is not part of this list, then it is licence. Licences are the generic category of rights that relate to land but which are not property rights. The four categories of licence include estoppel licences, bare licences, contractual licences, and licences coupled with an interest. The chapter concludes by exploring the concept of relativity of title in English land law.
