Riverview Projects Pty Ltd v Elleray & Anor

The applicants, Riverview Projects Pty Ltd, sought the removal of a caveat lodged by Elleray, the second defendant, over a property for which they were the registered proprietor. The second defendant's caveat was entered in reliance on a cohabitation agreement with the first defendant, which made reference to the property in question. The first defendant brought proceedings under Part IX of the Property Law Act 1958, seeking orders regarding the property. The applicants filed an application under section 86J of the Transfer of Land Act 1958 to have the caveat removed.

The central legal issue before the court was whether the applicants, as the registered proprietor of the property, were entitled to have the caveat removed. This involved considering the balance of convenience and whether the applicants' rights as the registered proprietor were being unduly prejudiced by the existence of the caveat. Additionally, the court had to determine the weight to be given to the cohabitation agreement and its reference to the property in relation to the applicants' proprietary interest.

The court found that the applicants had established that they were the registered proprietor of the property and, as such, were entitled to have the caveat removed. The court considered the balance of convenience and found that the applicants' rights as the registered proprietor were being prejudiced by the existence of the caveat. The cohabitation agreement and its reference to the property did not outweigh the applicants' proprietary interest. Therefore, the court ordered the removal of the caveat.

In conclusion, the court granted the applicants' application for the removal of the caveat, finding that the balance of convenience favoured the applicants as the registered proprietor of the property. The cohabitation agreement did not sufficiently affect the applicants' proprietary interest to justify maintaining the caveat.