Highlight We have been working closely with our stakeholders on the post-enactment review of the Land Titles Ordinance (LTO) to address the major outstanding issues relating to the preparation of the Land Titles (Amendments) Bill (LT(A)B). We regularly update the Joint Subcommittee on Amendments to LTO under the Panel on Development and the Panel on Administration of Justice and Legal Services of the Legislative Council (the LegCo Joint Subcommittee) on progress relating to the preparation of the LT(A)B. We will consult stakeholders on a new option to address their divergent views over the rectification and indemnity arrangements under the LTO, seeking to build a new consensus to take forward the land titles exercise.

(a) Recent Development

(i) Stakeholder Engagement

Last year, concerns were raised by some major stakeholders on the implications of the mandatory rectification rule under the LTO, which seeks to restore title to an innocent former owner who was displaced by fraud, on certainty of title. There were requests to adopt the immediate indefeasibility principle instead. There were also suggestions to remove the cap on indemnity payment for fraud cases and the bar on pre-conversion frauds. Reactions to these suggestions were mixed, however, as some stakeholders considered the preservation of the mandatory rectification rule to be of paramount importance.

As any significant changes to the rectification and indemnity provisions of the LTO would have far-reaching implications on the LTO and its automatic conversion mechanism for existing land registers held under the Land Registration Ordinance, the Land Registry has worked closely with stakeholders to address their divergent views and concerns. During the year, the Land Registrar convened three meetings of the LTO Steering Committee with representatives from The Law Society of Hong Kong, the Real Estate Developers Association of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Association of Banks, the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation Limited, the Estate Agents Authority, the Consumer Council, the Heung Yee Kuk and the Hong Kong Bar Association to exchange views on the conversion, rectification and indemnity arrangements under the LTO. The meetings have enabled participants to better appreciate the divergent concerns of different stakeholders, and exchanges at the meetings have provided a useful basis for the Land Registry to develop viable options to address such concerns.

(ii) Meeting with LegCo’s Joint Subcommittee on Amendments to LTO

During the year, we reported regularly to the LegCo Joint Subcommittee on the progress relating to the preparation of the LT(A)B. Major topics covered include the proposed Land Registrar’s Caution Against Conversion mechanism, the relationship between the LTO and other ordinances, the registration of managers of t’so and t’ong and the determination of land boundaries. We have kept the LegCo Joint Subcommittee up to speed on our discussion with stakeholders regarding the conversion, rectification and indemnity arrangements under the LTO. Papers and documents submitted to the LegCo Joint Subcommittee are available on the Land Registry’s homepage.

(iii) Review of LTO and Preparation of LT(A)B

We are continuing with the review of the LTO for the purpose of preparing the LT(A)B. As part of the review, we have been consulting various Government departments and working closely with them to address and resolve issues arising from the inter-relationship between the LTO and ordinances under their purview.