108 If Designation On Plan “Returned To Crown In Right Of The Province”

• 108 (1) Except as provided in section 107(1), if, on the subdivision of land, a subdivision or reference plan is deposited in the land title office, and a portion of the land subdivided is designated on the plan “Returned to Crown in right of the Province”, the deposit of the plan is deemed to be a transfer in fee simple by the registered owner in favour of the government.
• (2) If the subdivided area shown in and included in a subdivision or reference plan deposited in the land title office before or after this section comes into force adjoins land covered by water, and the land is included in the subdivider’s indefeasible title and adjoins land the title to which is vested in the Crown in right of the Province, the deposit is deemed to be a transfer in fee simple of the first mentioned land to the government, and the title of the registered owner to the first mentioned land covered by water is deemed to be extinguished.
• (3) Subsection (2) does not apply to land that has been exempted from the application of that subsection by order of the minister, subject to any terms or conditions contained in the exemption order.
• (3.1) The minister may delegate to the Surveyor General the minister’s powers and duties under subsection (3).
• (4) A certified copy of an order under subsection (3) must be filed with the deposit of the plan, and the registrar must make a note of the order in the records in the manner required by the director.
• (5) An application to the minister for an exemption under subsection (3) must be accompanied by the prescribed fee.
• (5.1) Subject to any terms or conditions the Lieutenant Governor in Council considers appropriate, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may order retroactively that subsection (2) did not operate on one or more occasions in respect of land identified in the order, if, in the opinion of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, one or both of the following apply:

• (a) it is desirable to clarify title to land because of uncertainty about the operation of subsection (2);
• (b) the operation of subsection (2) is inappropriate or unfair because a person, including a registered owner, as a result of a belief that the registered owner had title to land,
  • (i) has incurred costs in the past,
  • (ii) is likely to suffer loss in the future, or
  • (iii) is otherwise prejudiced.

• (5.2) Subject to the terms and conditions provided for by the Lieutenant Governor in Council and to subsection (5.4), an order under subsection (5.1) is retroactive for all purposes and, without limitation, has the following retroactive effects:

• (a) the land referred to in the order is conclusively deemed not to have been transferred in fee simple to the government under subsection (2) on any occasion identified in the order;
• (b) the title of the registered owner at the time of an occasion identified in the order is conclusively deemed not to have been extinguished under subsection (2).

• (5.3) The registrar must make a note of an order under subsection (5.1) in the records in the manner required by the director on receipt of the following:

• (a) a certified copy of the order;
• (b) if required by the registrar, a certificate from the minister stating that all terms and conditions in the order have been satisfied;
• (c) any other filings required by the registrar.

• (5.4) An order under subsection (5.1) only has effect if the registrar has made a note of it under subsection (5.3).
• (6) A transfer under subsection (1) or (2) is deemed to include the mines and minerals except if the title to them is registered in the name of an owner not required to sign a subdivision or reference plan.
• (7) An indefeasible title must not be registered for land transferred under subsections (1) and (2).

1979-219-108; 1982-60-25, proclaimed effective August 1, 1983; 1988-45-17; 1992-32-12, effective February 1, 1993 (B.C. Reg. 18/93); 2003-66-41, 43; 2014-7-7.