Chancel repair liability and leasehold property: are leaseholders at risk?

*L. & T. Review 98 The Law Commission agreed to conduct a project entitled "Chancel Repair Liability and Registration", focused on chancel repair liability as part of its 13th Programme of Law Reform (now rolled into the 14th Programme of Law Reform). The stated aim of the project is to "close the loophole and so achieve with certainty what was intended to be achieved by the Land Registration Act 2002". It is estimated that doing so would "eliminate the current standard practice of purchasers searching and/or insuring against the risk of liability, which costs an estimated 20 million each year": see Law Commission, The 13th Programme of Law Reform, Law Com. No.377, 2017 at 2.30–2.31. Concerns and issues surrounding chancel repair liability have been addressed previously by the Law Commission, and these matters have been considered by the courts, most notably in cases such as Aston Cantlow and Wilmcote with Billesley Parochial Church Council v Wallbank [2003] UKHL 37; [2004] 1 A.C. 546 , where the landowners were held liable for chancel repair costs in the region of tens of thousands of pounds. An aspect of chancel repair liability which receives less attention, however, is that connected with leasehold land. This article focuses on this aspect of chancel repair liability. In particular, it highlights the historical context of chancel repair liability and examines the arguments about how liability may arise in connection with leasehold land. It then explores the related practical issues, suggesting that these should be taken account of as part of the Law Commission’s efforts to reduce some of the uncertainty surrounding chancel repair liability.