Property Regularization Without a Lawsuit – Individual Land Registry Correction Procedure
In cases of significantly outdated land registers, the individual land registry correction procedure represents an effective and legitimate legal remedy for harmonising land registry records with cadastral data. In practice, its consistent application contributes to more orderly land registers, with a very small number of subsequent court disputes.
Regular Land Registry Procedure and Its Limitations
As a rule, land registry entries are carried out through the regular land registry procedure, which is by its nature a strictly formal procedure in which entries are permitted exclusively on the basis of qualified – tabular documents, i.e. documents that meet all strict requirements prescribed by the relevant provisions of the Land Registry Act.
Land registers, by their very nature, must reflect actual (extrajudicial) ownership status to the greatest possible extent.
Therefore, it is necessary that within the land registry system, alongside the above-mentioned regular procedure, there exists another legal remedy for achieving land registry entries, intended for situations where there is an objective impossibility of obtaining tabular documents required for the regular land registry procedure.
The Problem of Outdated Land Registers in the Republic of Croatia
Significantly neglected land registers, with entries made more than half a century ago, often prevent the use of the regular land registry procedure due to the absence of a registered predecessor, while old registered persons and their legal successors can usually no longer be identified.
Therefore, in such situations, harmonisation of the land registry status with the actual situation can hardly be achieved through the regular land registry procedure.
As a legal remedy for achieving land registry entries in such cases, the individual land registry correction procedure is provided. It is a special land registry procedure within which existing entries are corrected when, for objective reasons (primarily due to long-term neglect of land registers), it is not possible to obtain tabular documents that meet the requirements prescribed by the Land Registry Act for entry through the regular procedure.
When It Is Not Possible to Use the Individual Land Registry Correction Procedure?
The individual land registry correction procedure, as a non-contentious procedure, is intended for the settlement of neglected land registry records in uncontested situations where the aim is to harmonise the land registry status with the actual ownership status by correcting existing entries.
This procedure cannot be used if there is a dispute regarding ownership. If the registered owner or their legal successor is known and available and disputes ownership rights, the situation is considered contentious.
In such cases, the dispute cannot be resolved through the individual land registry correction procedure, but exclusively in civil court proceedings. A judgment rendered in litigation may serve as a valid basis for registration of ownership rights in the land register through the regular land registry procedure, which is why in such cases there is no legal basis for initiating the individual land registry correction procedure.
How the Individual Land Registry Correction Procedure Is Initiated?
The procedure is initiated upon a proposal submitted by a person with legal interest.
The proposal must clearly state how the correction of the land registry folio is requested, which entries are to be corrected and in whose favour, as well as the facts on which the proposal is based (e.g. method and history of acquisition of rights).
The proposal may be accompanied by a draft corrected land registry folio, documents proving the justification of the proposal (e.g. contracts, cadastral data, statements of owners or heirs, etc.)
It is important to note that it is not necessary to indicate the persons against whom the procedure is conducted.
If changes to cadastral data are requested, a certified application sheet issued by the competent cadastral authority must also be attached.
How the Individual Land Registry Correction Procedure Works in Practice?
After receiving a proper proposal, the court issues a decision on opening the procedure (as a rule within 30 days). A note (caveat) is entered in the land register. This entry does not prevent further registrations, but subsequent entries may be deleted if they are contrary to the final court decision.
The court then publishes a public notice informing about the initiation of the procedure and invites all interested parties to submit applications or objections.
The deadline for objections is 30 days from the publication of the notice.
If no objections are submitted within the given period and the documentation supports the proposal, the court may issue a decision without holding a hearing. In such case, the decision is issued within 30 working days after the expiry of the objection period.
If disputes arise between parties, they may be resolved in civil proceedings after the completion of this procedure.
The individual land registry correction procedure is a simpler, faster and in practice often more efficient way of regulating ownership compared to initiating court litigation. In situations where the land registry status does not correspond to the actual situation, this procedure enables correction of entries without the need for lengthy and complex litigation.
Although the procedure is formally simpler than filing a lawsuit, proper preparation of the proposal and documentation is crucial for its success. Therefore, professional legal assistance can significantly speed up the process and reduce the risk of rejection of the proposal.
Our law firm will assess whether your case meets the requirements for initiating the individual land registry correction procedure, prepare the necessary documentation, and guide you through the entire process – with the aim of ensuring that your ownership is regulated as quickly and securely as possible.
