The San Francisco call., 1906-06-23
TORRENS LAND
ACT IS 4 BOON
NeglectedLawCan Now
Be Employed to
Advantage.

Robert T. Devlin, formerly State SEN
ator from Sacramento and at present
United States District Attorney, has
always favored simple methods in the
transfer of title to real estate The
Legislature in 1897 passed the Torrens
land act, and Elliott McAllister, Frank
Miller and r. y. Bulla were appointed
commissioners to carry into effect the
purposes of the act
In an interview yesterday Mr.. Devlin
had this to say regarding the merits
of the new system:
The property owners of San Francis
co have now an opportunity of simpli-
flying the transfer of land titles by
availing themselves of the so-called
Torrens land act. passed in 1897 The
object of this act Is to make the trans
fer of land as simple and as inexpen
sive as the transfer of shares of stock
In a corporation. II you desire. under
the present system. to buy a lot worth
$500 ii is necessary to have an abstract
or bond from a title insurance COM
gage the process must be repeated, and
no matter how perfect a title may be
as matter Of fact, there is scarcely an
abstract which does not disclose some
irregularity. Although this may be OF
trivial Importance iy-speck"-it
gives rise to endless quibbling and
contention.
Under the Torrens act, a proceeding
is commenced in court and the court
issues a certificate of title. This GER
tifcate is conclusive of the title which
1t states, and all subsequent transfers
and membranes are noted upon It.
This system has been In operation for
many years in Australia and is in use
in some of the Eastern States.
Although this law has been in force
in California for more than nine years.
do not know of a single case yet
brought under its provisions. One of
the reasons for this is that the law re-
quires an abstract to be furnished by
some person or company that shall
give bond in sum not less than $10,-
600, which may be increased from time
to time by the court.
The adoption OF the Torrens system
would destroy the business of search
ers of records, so if any one desired to
not, prior to the recent fire. obtain any
searcher of records who would give
the necessary bond.
But any one can call himself a
searcher of records and give the bond
required. A number of property own
ers In block can make a transfer of
their titles 10 single individual. or
to trust company, and suit can be
brought under this law to have the
court settle the title to all the property
involved Any one of the owners can
give the bond required, and the suit
would proceed, much as does now an
action to quiet title. While he would
the court of his title. he would have
to do no more than he would in any
suit to quiet title, and any one willing
TO give the bond could set himself up
as searcher II those in the business
refuse to qualify.
AT the conclusion the plaintiff would
obtain a certificate of title. which he
could subdivide by having issued to
each owner who had assigned to him
a certificate for his property There
after the certificate could be sold or
mortgaged as is a certificate of stock
COTn0TQfl0n a nyvn
a loan from a bank, instead of going
through. the tedious process of having
an abstract made and submitting the
same to an attorney for examination
he would simply have the fact of mort,
gage noted upon his certificate and
entered in the books of the recorder.
The proceeding to place the title to
land under this system is not more exo
pensive than the ordinary action to
quiet title. If this system was nut in
operation in San Francisco 1t would
make the sale of real estate as easy
and simple as the sale of bonds or
stocks of corporations.