Commentary on Sections Part 9: Rights of Persons Acquiring Etc. in Good Faith
199.This part provides for the circumstances in which the Land Register is inaccurate in law or fact, but is not to be rectified. In these cases, the Part provides for the underlying property rights to be transferred to the person in whose name title to land is currently registered. Put another way, instead of the register being changed, property rights are changed.
200.The circumstances where the Act provides for this transfer of rights are limited and are most likely to operate in the cases of error or fraudulent sale and subsequent registration. Where a property is fraudulently registered or registered in error, the true owner can seek a reversal of that registration in their favour, as long as the registered proprietors right to the property has become exempt from challenge in terms of the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973, or registered in favour of an innocent third party more than one year after the original registration. However, where the property has been registered in favour of such an innocent third party and the other criteria set out have been met, the registration cannot be reversed. In such cases, the original owner would be compensated by the Keeper.