Friday, April 03, 2009

eDischarges: First element of eConveyancing in Ireland

The Property Registration Authority (PRA) in partnership with the Law Society andIrish Mortgage Council has developed a new online system which will enable lending institutions to request the cancellation of registered charges by electronic means without the need to submit any paper to the PRA. The new system – known as eDischarges - will be more secure, efficient and transparent than the existing process and will eliminate many of the inefficiencies and delays currently experienced when mortgages have been redeemed.

Catherine Treacy, Chief Executive of the PRA said “The launch of this new system for processing discharges of charges in a completely paperless environment is public validation of a significant amount of work undertaken over the past two years.  While planning and development work has been ongoing for several years this is the first public step on a journey that will ultimately lead to a complete system of electronic conveyancing in Ireland.  All of the parties, particularly the staff in the PRA who have worked on the development of this system, can take great pride in their achievement.  The PRA would like to place on record its sincere thanks for the contribution made by the Law Society and Irish Mortgage Council and our colleagues in the Revenue Commissioners and Companies Registration Office, to the successful delivery of the new eDischarges system.”

The development of an eDischarges capability by the PRA is central to the development of a national system of electronic registration of title (eRegistration). The launch of eDischarges will also mark the delivery of the first element of eConveyancing in Ireland.

Gabriel Brennan, Law Society eConveyancing Project Manager said “The Law Society is delighted to be involved in this exciting initiative and thanks the PRA staff and Irish Banking Federation (IBF)for working so closely with the legal profession on the design of this new system. As a result of this collaboration inefficiencies and delays in the release of registered charges will be eliminated. Also in conjunction with this project the Law Society and IBF have initiated a new streamlined procedure for requesting title deeds, redemption figures and discharge of a charge. Together these two initiatives represent significant reform of the conveyancing process. There remains, however, considerable work to be done to reach the ultimate goal of eConveyancing and the Law Society looks forward to building on this progress with the PRA and IBF in the coming years.” 

Three lending institutions - Permanent TSB, AIB and KBC Bank - will launch the live system on the 30th March 2009 and, two weeks later on the 14th April, the system will be available to all lenders.

Pat Farrell, Chief Executive of IBF said “There was great appreciation amongst IBF members for the constructive nature of the working relationship with both the PRA and the Law Society.  This dialogue has led to the first tangible milestone on the road towards a fully functioning eConveyancing system in Ireland. IBF welcomes the move towards a modern, paperless and streamlined conveyancing system. Ultimately, eConveyancing throughthe introduction of a technology driven process will benefit Irish consumers and other stakeholders in the form of enhanced consistency, transparency and reduction in time and costs. In the meantime, IBF looks forward to continued engagement with the PRA and Law Society to achieve further improvements to the conveyancing process.” 

Source  Sarah Long in Changes in land registry practice and procedure in other countries

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