You may recall two of my previous articles, Are You Looking for 20 Chains and, Material Possession of 7, Legal Possession of 9, both highlighted the importance of paying attention to what land is being conveyed.

 

What about Parcels, Lots and Blocks within a Plan?

 

As with condominiums and legal subdivisions, when a solicitor is conveying a Parcel, Lot or a Block within a Plan, the solicitor should be mindful of what is being conveyed (namely, the actual location of the real property).

 

Within the City of Winnipeg the legal description for real property is often identified by virtue of obtaining a civic address and conducting a City of Winnipeg Tax Search of that civic address upon which a Manitoba Certificate of Title Number is revealed; a search of that Title Number through Titles Online provides a Status of Title upon which is a legal description.  A similar process often occurs for real property outside the City of Winnipeg however the Title Number is revealed by virtue of conducting a search  through Manitoba Municipal Relations Property Assessment Property Search.

 

In both cases it is often assumed the information provided by the City of Winnipeg and the Province of Manitoba is accurate.  Please be mindful of making assumptions.  Should an assumption be incorrect and the information provided wrong, the client will be transferred the wrong Parcel, Lot or Block, will hold legal possession of the wrong Parcel, Lot or Block and will most certainly have physical possession of the correct real property.

 

Importantly, if the legal description of the real property is one in which there is a “PARCEL, LOT, BLOCK and PLAN”, for example, LOT 1 BLOCK 2 PLAN 3456 WLTO or PARCEL 2 PLAN 3456 WLTO, the Plan (in our example PLAN 3456 WLTO) may be ordered from the Property Registry and reviewed by the solicitor, that Plan will show the location of the real property (in or example Lot 1, Block 2 or Parcel 2) in comparison to other lots and perhaps streets, lanes, parcels, blocks and other plans, all of which will provide a general picture of where the Parcel, Lot or Block is located.  This is the procedure of Plan Review.

 

While the procedure of Plan Review is not to be used as a substitute for retaining a Manitoba Land Surveyor to identify the location of real property, it will help to ensure that the information obtained from the City of Winnipeg and the Province of Manitoba (namely the Title Number that corresponds to the civic address and or property tax information) is accurate and that our clients rightfully receive legal possession to the material real property enjoyed; thereby whenever a Parcel, Lot or Block is being conveyed the solicitor should invite the client to identify same upon the Plan.

 

Prepared by:

Jason Bryk

[email protected]

204-956-3510