1 Appointment Of Trustees To Hold Land

PRACTICE

Registration of Indefeasible Title

Where there is a conveyance to a religious society or congregation, the registrar registers the indefeasible title in the name of the “Trustees of the Congregation of (Name of Church)” or, where the applicant requests it, in the names of the trustees with the addition of “Trustees of the Congregation of (Name of Church)”. The registrar also includes the address of the religious society or congregation. The title will be set out as follows:

TRUSTEES OF THE CONGREGATION (NAME OF CHURCH) PURSUANT TO THE TRUSTEE (CHURCH PROPERTY) ACT, 1278 FAIRVIEW ROAD, VICTORIA, B.C. V8X 3X3

DEALINGS WITH LAND

Mortgages

Power to Mortgage: Section 3 of the Act authorizes trustees to secure a debt by way of a mortgage on land held by the trustees in circumstances involving the building, repairing, extending, or improving of a church, meeting house, chapel, school, or belfry on the land or the purchase of land on which any such structure has been or is intended to be erected.

Completion of Form B, Mortgage Form: If a religious society or congregation is the borrower or mortgagor, show its name in Item 3 of Part 1 of the Form B, Mortgage Form, in the same manner as provided below in the example for a transferee.

Leases

Power to Lease: Section 4 of the Act provides that trustees may let, for any term not longer than 21 years, land held by them for the use of a congregation or religious body, at the rent and on the terms the trustees or a majority of them think reasonable. Section 5 of the Act limits this power by providing that trustees may not let property without the consent of the congregation or religious body for whose use they hold the land in trust or where the land is necessary for certain purposes at the time of making the lease.

Transfer to or from a Religious Society or Congregation

Power to Acquire and Deal with Land: Section 6 of the Act provides trustees with a general power to acquire and deal with land, including the powers to hold, mortgage, lease, sell, exchange, or otherwise dispose of any land.

Completion of Freehold Transfer where religious society or congregation is a transferee: Show the transferee on the Form A, Freehold Transfer, as follows:

6. Transferee(S): (Including Occupation(S), Postal Address(Es) And Postal Codes(S))*

TRUSTEES OF THE CONGREGATION OF (NAME OF CHURCH) Pursuant to the

Trustee (Church Property) Act, 1278 Fairview Road, Victoria, B.C., V8X 3X3

Alternatively, set out the names of the individual trustees as follows:

6. Transferee(S): (including occupation(s), postal address(es) and postal codes(s))*

JOHN PAUL SMITH, Merchant, 925 Eden Street, Victoria, B.C. V9A 6P4, MARY LEE

JONES, Manager, 529 Near Street, Victoria, B.C. V9A 6P5, and JACK MAX JONES,

Dentist, 7749 Blanshard Street, Victoria, B.C. V8L 3R9, Trustees of the Congregation

of (Name of Church) Pursuant to the Trustee (Church Property) Act.

Completion of Freehold Transfer where religious society or congregation is a transferor: Show the transferor on the Form A, Freehold Transfer, as follows:

5. Transferor(s):*

TRUSTEES OF THE CONGREGATION OF (NAME OF CHURCH) Pursuant to the

Trustee (Church Property) Act.

Alternatively, set out the names of the individual trustees as follows:

5. Transferor(s):*

JOHN PAUL SMITH, MARY LEE JONES and JACK MAX JONES, Trustees of the

Congregation of (Name of Church) Pursuant to the Trustee (Church Property) Act.

CASE LAW

Registration of Indefeasible Title

In Ontario, based on similar legislation, it was held that trustees could hold property either in their individual names as Trustees or in their quasi-corporate name alone as “Trustees of the Congregation of the Reformed Presbyterian Church” (Humphreys v. Hunter (1870), 20 U.C.C.P. 456).