Land Compensation Act 1961

Last updated

Land Compensation Act 1961 [1]
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (Variant 1, 2022).svg
Long title An Act to consolidate the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919, and certain other enactments relating to the assessment of compensation in respect of compulsory acquisitions of interests in land; to the withdrawal of notices to treat; and to the payment of additional compensation and of allowances in connection with such acquisitions or with certain sales by agreement of interests in land; with corrections and improvements made under the Consolidation of Enactments (Procedure) Act 1949
Citation 9 & 10 Eliz. 2. c. 33
Territorial extent England and Wales [2]
Dates
Royal assent 22 June 1961
Commencement 1 August 1961
Repealed
Other legislation
Amended byA303 Sparkford to Ilchester Dualling Development Consent Order 2021/125; National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999/672
Repealed by
Relates to
Status: Amended
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Land Compensation Act 1961 (9 & 10 Eliz. 2. c. 33) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom, which concerns English land law and compulsory purchase. The majority of this Act was brought into force on 1 August 1961, with Part V s.42 coming into force on 22 July 1961.

Contents

The Act consolidated several earlier Acts of Parliament which concerned compensation for compulsory purchase, most notably the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act 1919.

Contents

Part I – Determination of Questions of Disputed Compensation

Section 1 provides that where land is acquired under compulsory purchase, any disputed compensation should be decided by the Upper Tribunal in accordance with this Act, as amended by The Transfer of Tribunal Functions (Lands Tribunal and Miscellaneous Amendments) Order 2009. Section 4A was inserted by the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Part II – Provisions Determining Amount of Compensation

Part II sets out the provisions which must be applied to determine the amount of compensation owed to owners of land which has been acquired under the compulsory purchase scheme. Section 5 Rule 2 provides that the owner of an interest in land (e.g. a freehold, leasehold, or easement as in Re Ellenborough Park [3] ) should receive the open market value of the property. [4] This is defined as the "value of the land... if sold on an open market by a willing seller". The amount of compensation owed to the landowner is not affected by the land acquisition being compulsory, the special suitability of the land for a particular purpose or any unlawful existing use. However, this does not exclude additional compensation owed to the landowner for disturbance.

The Neighbourhood Planning Act 2017 inserted an additional Rule 2A, which requires the compensation to be calculated in accordance with the no-scheme rules in sections 6A. [5] This codified the ruling in the case of Pointe Gourde Quarrying & Transport Co v Sub-Intendent of Crown Lands . [6] The Privy Council ruled that that compensation could not include any increases which were the result of the scheme for which the acquiring authority was purchasing the land. In addition, the no-scheme rules in the Act disregard any decrease in value which is the result of the scheme. The land must be valued as if there was never any scheme, and the valuers must imagine what developments would or would not have occurred in its place. [7]

The original planning assumptions in sections 14-17 of the Act were amended by the Localism Act 2011. They allow land to be valued for its existing use, or valued by taking into account any planning permission which was in force on the valuation date, the potential future grant of planning permission, or appropriate alternative development.

Part III – Certification By Planning Authorities of Appropriate Alternative Development

Section 17 says that either the acquiring authority or the landowner can ask the local planning authority for a certificate which states whether there is a development which would satisfy the test for appropriate alternative development. [8]

Part IV – Compensation where Permission for Additional Development Granted after Acquisition

This Part was omitted by the Neighbourhood Planning Act 2017.

Part V – Miscellaneous and General

See also

Notes

  1. The citation of this Act by this short title is authorised by section 42 of this Act.
  2. This Act does not extent to Scotland or Northern Ireland by section 42.
  3. [1955] EWCA Civ 4, [1956] Ch 131
  4. Barnes, Michael (2014). The Law of Compulsory Purchase and Compensation. Hart Publishing. p. 86. ISBN   9781849464482.
  5. Denyer-Green, Barry (2018). Compulsory Purchase and Compensation. Routledge. ISBN   9781138617766.
  6. Pointe Gourde Quarrying & Transport Co v Sub-Intendent of Crown Lands [1947] AC 565
  7. Myers v Milton Keynes Development Corp [1974] 1 WLR 696
  8. Plimmer, Frances (2008). "Compulsory Purchase and Compensation: an overview of the system in England and Wales". Nordic Journal of Surveying and Real Estate Research. 3: 144–163.

Related Research Articles

Eminent domain, land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation is the power of a state, provincial, or national government to take private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and transfer ownership of private property from one property owner to another private property owner without a valid public purpose. This power can be legislatively delegated by the state to municipalities, government subdivisions, or even to private persons or corporations, when they are authorized by the legislature to exercise the functions of public character.

A compulsory purchase order is a legal function in the United Kingdom and Ireland that allows certain bodies to obtain land or property without the consent of the owner. It may be enforced if a proposed development is considered one for public betterment; for example, when building motorways where a landowner does not want to sell. Similarly, if town councils wish to develop a town centre, they may issue compulsory purchase orders. CPOs can also be used to acquire historic buildings in order to preserve them from neglect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruskin Square</span>

Ruskin Square is a project to redevelop a parcel of land between East Croydon railway station and the existing town centre of Croydon in South London. It is part of the major Croydon Vision 2020 regeneration scheme. It has been subject to substantial public debate which has featured in the national media.

Section 51(xxxi) is a subclause of section 51 of the Constitution of Australia. It empowers the Commonwealth to make laws regarding the acquisition of property, but stipulates that such acquisitions must be on just (fair) terms. The terms is sometimes referred to in shorthand as the 'just terms' provision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Town and Country Planning Act 1990</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Town and Country Planning Act 1990 is an act of the United Kingdom Parliament regulating the development of land in England and Wales. It is a central part of English land law in that it concerns town and country planning in the United Kingdom. Repealed in parts by the Planning and Compensation Act 1991, it is now also complemented by the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Town and Country Planning Act 1947</span> Act of Parliament

The Town and Country Planning Act 1947 was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom passed by the Labour government led by Clement Attlee. It came into effect on 1 July 1948, and along with the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1947 was the foundation of modern town and country planning in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lands Tribunal (England, Wales and Northern Ireland)</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Lands Tribunal was a tribunal in the United Kingdom created by the Lands Tribunal Act 1949 that had jurisdiction in England and Wales and Northern Ireland, although in the Northern Ireland context the term Lands Tribunal normally refers to a different body, the Lands Tribunal for Northern Ireland. The Lands Tribunal was unusual in having both first instance and appellate jurisdiction. The functions of the Lands Tribunal were transferred to the Upper Tribunal in June 2009 by the Transfer of Tribunal Functions Order 2009.

Navigable servitude is a doctrine in United States constitutional law that gives the federal government the right to regulate navigable waterways as an extension of the Commerce Clause in Article I, Section 8 of the constitution. It is also sometimes called federal navigational servitude.

The Land and Valuation Court of New South Wales was a court which had jurisdiction to deal with disputes concerning crown land in New South Wales. It replaced the Land Court of New South Wales on 10 December 1921 and itself replaced by the Land and Environment Court of New South Wales on 1 September 1980.

The Lands Tribunal for Scotland is a tribunal with jurisdiction over land and property in Scotland, relating to title obligations, compulsory purchase and other private rights. The Tribunal was established under the Lands Tribunal Act 1949, which also created the separate Lands Tribunal in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.

<i>DHN Food Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets LBC</i>

DHN Food Distributors Ltd v Tower Hamlets London Borough Council [1976] 1 WLR 852 is a UK company law case where, on the basis that a company should be compensated for loss of its business under a compulsory acquisition order, a group was recognised as a single economic entity. It stands as a liberal example of when UK courts may lift the veil of incorporation of a company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">English land law</span> Law of real property in England and Wales

English land law is the law of real property in England and Wales. Because of its heavy historical and social significance, land is usually seen as the most important part of English property law. Ownership of land has its roots in the feudal system established by William the Conqueror after 1066, and with a gradually diminishing aristocratic presence, now sees a large number of owners playing in an active market for real estate. The modern law's sources derive from the old courts of common law and equity, along with legislation such as the Law of Property Act 1925, the Settled Land Act 1925, the Land Charges Act 1972, the Trusts of Land and Appointment of Trustees Act 1996 and the Land Registration Act 2002. At its core, English land law involves the acquisition, content and priority of rights and obligations among people with interests in land. Having a property right in land, as opposed to a contractual or some other personal right, matters because it creates privileges over other people's claims, particularly if the land is sold on, the possessor goes insolvent, or when claiming various remedies, like specific performance, in court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013</span> Act of Indian Parliament

The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 is an Act of Indian Parliament that regulates land acquisition and lays down the procedure and rules for granting compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement to the affected persons in India. The Act has provisions to provide fair compensation to those whose land is taken away, brings transparency to the process of acquisition of land to set up factories or buildings, infrastructural projects and assures rehabilitation of those affected. The Act replaced the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 enacted during British rule.

Land acquisition is the power of the union or a state government in India to take private land for public, and to compensate the original owners and other persons affected due to such acquisition.

Compulsory purchase is the power to purchase rights over an estate in English land law, or to buy that estate outright, without the current owner's consent. In England and Wales, Parliament has granted several different kinds of compulsory purchase power, which are exercisable by various bodies in various situations. Such powers are meant to be used "for the public benefit". This expression is interpreted broadly.

Land bonds are financial bonds used in many countries to satisfy, in whole or in part, the compensation payable by the government for compulsory acquisition of any land from private landowners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leasehold Reform Act 1967</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Leasehold Reform Act 1967 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom, which concerns English land law and compulsory purchase. A government bill, the law remains largely intact. It was passed by both Houses and had been tabled by ministers of the Labour government, 1964–1970.

Beginning in 1969, the government of Peru issued sovereign bonds as compensation for land expropriation during the Peruvian land reform under General Juan Velasco Alvarado. The government's aim was to redistribute land and reform the country's agrarian infrastructure. Payments on these bonds halted in 1992 due to periods of hyperinflation. The agrarian bonds have been recognized as outstanding sovereign debt obligations by Peru's highest courts, who have stated that these bonds should be repaid. However, today the debt remains unpaid, and the government of Peru has yet to clarify means and ultimate value of compensation to current bondholders.

<i>Bocardo SA v Star Energy UK Onshore Ltd</i>

Bocardo SA v Star Energy UK Onshore Ltd [2010] UKSC 35 is a UK enterprise law case, concerning oil and gas. It held a landowner also owned the strata and minerals, unless they conveyed it, in common law or statute, to someone else, so an oil company making wells 800 to 2,900 feet below the surface was trespass, and had to pay compulsory purchase compensation under the Mines Act 1966 s 8(2).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compulsory purchase laws in Scotland</span>

Compulsory purchase are powers to obtain land in Scotland that were traditionally available to certain public bodies in Scots law. Scots law classifies compulsory purchase as an involuntary transfer of land, as the owner of the corporeal heritable property (land) does not consent to the transfer of ownership.

References