Possession, Relative Title, and Ownership in English Law

Luke Rostill is an Associate Professor of Property Law in the Oxford Law Faculty and a Tutorial Fellow in Law at Trinity College. Before taking up his current role, Luke was a Supernumerary Teaching Fellow in Law at St John's College, Oxford. Luke read Jurisprudence (Law) at Wadham College, Oxford, and remained at Wadham for the BCL, MPhil, and DPhil. His research and teaching interests primarily concern the law of property and property theory.

• Preface1. Introduction2. Possession2.1: The Aims and Scope of the Enquiry2.2: Scepticism of Possession2.3: The Nature of Possession2.4: Possession of Estates and Interests3. Possession and Title: Three Views3.1: Introduction3.2: Three Views of Title by Possession3.3: The Importance of Distinguishing the Three Views3.4: Conceptual Objections to Presumptions of Property3.5: Conclusion4. Possession and Title to Land4.1: Introduction4.2: The Incidents of a Possessor's Interest4.3: Objections to the Strong Proprietary Interest View4.4: The Scope of the Acquisition Rule4.5: Conclusion5. Possession and Title to Chattels5.1: Introduction5.2: The Incidents of a Possessor's Interest5.3: Objections to the Strong Proprietary Interest View5.4: Conclusion6. The Grounds of Relative Title6.1: Introduction6.2: Obligation-based Arguments6.3: The Security and Certainty of Title7. Ownership and Relativity of Title7.1: Ownership in General7.2: Ownership of Land and Chattels in English Law7.3: Ownership and Relative Title7.4: Conclusion

In terms of substance, [the book] is a real heavyweight. The sheer depth and rigour of the analysis contained within it do not make for light reading; yet the great merit of Dr Rostill's style of writing is that there is absolutely no fuzziness about it, there are no mere assertions or wasted words. The short monograph is crystal - clear in what it sets out to do, and it delivers comprehensively on this promise ... Dr Rostill's book is one of the best and most stimulating legal monographs this reviewer has had the pleasure to read over the past few years. As a piece of scholarship meticulously shoring up the modern orthodoxy in English property law, it is a must for anyone working in the field, and it deserves to command attention far beyond this constituency.