Articles by author
Schrödinger’s Deed: can an instrument be two things at once?
Following the obiter comments of HHJ Pelling KC in Macdonald Hotels Limited & Anor v Bank of Scotland PLC [2025] EWHC 32 (Comm), there may be reasons for the financial sector to be concerned about a common approach to the execution of agreements in cases where the counterparties intend the instrument to be simultaneously both a deed (for one or more parties) and a simple contract (for the other party or parties). James Hall and William Golightly of Gatehouse Chambers consider the court’s treatment of the “intention requirement” for deeds in s 1(2) of the Law of Property (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1989.
9 JUN 2025The risks of attempting to rectify mistakes in security documents, without seeking a court order
Where mistakes occur in security documents, practitioners usually have to assess whether they should be rectified by the court, or whether rectification by the parties alone is sufficient (eg in a Deed of Rectification (DoR)). This can create particular headaches if the mistake is spotted after registration; and the consequences may also depend on the nature of the mistake. For example, if the DoR arguably creates a new security (such as by correcting a mistake in the definition of the liabilities secured), this may cause problems where the simple correction of addresses or other typographical errors might not. This article considers the law relating to rectification of such documents, and some of the practical implications of dealing with rectification whether through the courts or simply between the parties to the security.
1 OCT 2023
