Lecture 1: Basic Framework of Land

Management
Engr. Michael Cobilla
Faculty-in-Charge
GE 322: Land Administration and Management
GOVERNANCE OF LANDS

Sound MANAGEMENT of land

and real property for sustainable
development
What is land administration?
Land Administration
• “the regulatory framework, institutional arrangements,
systems and processes that encompass the determination,
allocation, administration, and information concerning land. It
includes the determination and conditions of approved uses of
land, the adjudication of rights and their registration via titling,
the recording of land transaction, and the estimation of value
and taxes based on land and property” (AusAID, 2001).
General Review
• An efficient, formal land administration system is an essential
requirement for the operation of a formal land market. A systematic
titling and registration program supported by strong legal, institutional
and policy framework facilitates the exchange and distribution of land at
low cost through rental or sales. This is also central in expediting land
access that increases the incentive of households and individuals to
invest, and often provide them with better access to credit
(Bangsal and Lebrilla, 2008).
General Review
• The functioning of land markets is far more important today because of the
increased payoffs from land investment resulting from population growth and
opportunities arising from greater market integration and technical advances.
These economic imperatives require the appropriate land institutions and
policies that can ensure enforceability of land tenures.

• On the other hand, failure of the institutions administering land rights to

respond to these demands can lead to land grabbing, conflict, and resource
depletion that can undermine societies’ productive and economic potential.
General Review
• The country’s land administration system has not helped deliver the
expected social and economic outcomes. Because of institutional and
legal barriers, these have resulted in high transaction cost in registering
property rights, which in turn, has been a disincentive to investment
and credit access. Moreover, the absence of a clear mechanism to
resolve land disputes and inappropriate land valuation has continued to
erode public confidence in the system (Bangsal and Lebrilla, 2008, p. 3;
LAMP1, 2002)
Legal and Regulatory Framework
Legal and Regulatory Framework
• An inventory of the laws relevant to public land disposition and
land registration has been undertaken by the LAMP1 (2002).
The inventory identifies more than 60 laws and regulations
touching on these particular aspects of land administration.
Many of these laws have been in existence for a long time and
have not been rescinded, repealed, revised, reformed or
altered to meet modern needs.
Example

PD 1529

the express intent of which was to codify the laws relating to

land registration, did not repeal or replace many of the
provisions of Act 496, Act 2259 or RA 26 even though it dealt
with the same subject matter.
Example

RA 6657

did not replace previous laws such as RA 3844 (Agrarian

Reform Law), PD 27 (Land Reform Law/Tenants’ Emancipation
Act) and PD 2766 and these laws continue to exist and have
“suppletory effect”
Legal and Regulatory Framework
• Some laws are no longer consistent with other existing
legislation especially those related to land registration. For
instance, Presidential Decree (PD) 1529 otherwise known as
the Property Registration Decree of 1978—which is the
governing law on land registration—stated that all title
disputes, including smallest corrections on title, have to go
through the courts (LAMP1, 2002).
Legal and Regulatory Framework
• Also, PD 1529—the express intent of which was to
codify the laws relating to land registration—did
not repeal or replace many of the provisions of
the Land Registration Act (Act 496) and Cadastral
Act (Act 2259) even though it dealt with the same
subject matter (LAMP1, 2002).
Legal and Regulatory Framework
• Unlike the Philippines, other countries in Asia have
embodied major land-related laws in a single
code, generally confined to basic principles, with
the subsidiary laws contained in more easily
amended regulations.
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
1. CA 141 (Public Lands Act) serves as the
foundation of subsequent laws on public land;
2. Act 496 (Land Registration Act of 1902) as
supplemented by PD 1529 (Property Registration Decree)
Both provide for the registration of lands claimed as private
property, requiring all patents, certificates, deed and
conveyance issued by the Bureau of Land to be registered at
the Registry of Deeds;
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
3. Act 2259 (Cadastral Act) provides for the cadastral
survey and institution of compulsory and mass
judicial proceedings for the settlement and
adjudication of claims to all kinds of land;
4. Section 194 of Act 3344 (Administrative Code)
provides for a system of recording instruments or deeds
relating to real estate not registered under Act 496 or
under the Spanish Mortgage Law (LAMP1, 2002).
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Note that the Philippines is unique because the land
titling process here is done judicially and
administratively while in Thailand, Malaysia,
Indonesia, Cambodia and Laos, registration are
through administrative processes only.
• The Land Registration Act and the Cadastral Act both
fall under the Torrens system of titling process and the
proceedings in both Acts are judicial in character
(LAMP1, 2002)
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Evidently, the requirement for time-consuming and
expensive judicial processes have led to the demise of
the Torrens system in most of America and has
contributed to the informality and lack of coverage of
the titling and registration system in the Philippines.
The cost of these proceedings has placed registration
beyond the reach of landholding Filipinos (See Box 1).
More so, the delays contribute to the lack of
credibility of the system.
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Obtaining a formal title through voluntary judicial
proceeding has not encouraged a “culture of
registration.” This can be attributed to a number of
steps involved and the delays due to an overloaded
Court system and the inability of the Courts to allocate
sufficient time to land titling matters. A recent survey
of Regional Trial Courts indicates that 15% of all cases
handled by the Courts are related to land registration
issues (LAMP1, 2002)
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Moreover, the requirement for judicial determination
is not confined to original registration. It includes
matters such as reconstitution of lost original titles,
replacement of lost duplicate titles, removal of
notifications on administratively reconstituted titles
and correction of errors (including even minor clerical
errors) on titles.
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• In making these requirements, the Philippines
made a major departure from the original aim of
the Torrens system which was to provide a simple,
inexpensive administrative process (LAMP1,
2002).
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Formalization of title through administrative
process was also made possible by successive
Public Land Acts through the issuance of a
patent—known as Free Patent—to persons who
have continuously occupied and cultivated
agricultural public lands.
Basic Laws on Titling and Registration
• Free Patent is much different from judicial confirmation
because of conditions attached to the grant of Free Patent
1. There is a limitation on the area that can be
obtained—a maximum of five hectares is allowed.
2. A Free Patent cannot be sold or mortgaged for a
period of five years after issue. These conditions are
regarded more as constraints to a freely operating land
market given the time lags to make productive use of
such resources.
Conclusion
• The voluntary judicial proceedings and the administrative
proceedings can operate in parallel. This means a claimant may
have a choice of which process to obtain or formalize a title. But
the resulting problem here is that each process involves different
agencies and the coordination between and among the agencies
has been problematic, to say the least. In most cases, competing
claims from different proceedings can lead to more friction in the
land market.
Reference:
1. Land Administration System:
Functional and Efficiency Implications
By Novel Bangsal and Ma. Leni Lebrilla, 2008 HOR Policy Advisory
2008-05
2. Tony Burns, “Land Administration Reform. Indicators of Success and
Future Challenges”, Agriculture and Rural Development Discussion
Paper No. 37, The World Bank, 2007.
3. Philippine–Australia Land Administration and Management Project
(PALAMP), Land Laws and Regulations Policy Study, July 2002