Help - Deeds

Joey96

Hello to everyone, I am writing on behalf of my 91 year old grandfather. I am not sure if I am writing in the correct section so please move if needed.
Basically, my grandfather has some very old (70yo) deeds to some land, this land is empty however is owned / held by the council. He always knew he owned this land however could not find the deeds until recently.
My question is, is this land now long gone? Do these deeds mean anything? Is there any way he can try and claim for the land?
I hope there is someone that can offer a little light before we spend money on a solicitor.
Thank You in Advance
Jo

moneyistooshorttomention

This query needs to go on the housing sub-forum. It's "Housebuying, Renting and Selling".

Hopefully someone there will be able to help you and find a way for him to get his land back.

bouicca21

And the housing board will want more info - is the land fenced off and maintained by the council, if so for how long and did he ever give permission to do so?

And crucially is there a record at land registry?

buildersdaughter

As this hasn't yet been moved - I'd suggest going on to the Land Registry. You can get a copy of entries quite cheaply.
Gather the following information:
The deeds your grandfather holds
Copy of LR entry (whatever it says, some historical stuff is not always accurate)
Information about why you say that the council has the land.

Then look for legal advice in one of the following ways:

If he has house / contents insurance check to see if it includes free legal advice (a lot do). Some Trades Unions and a few Friendly Societies also include some legal cover in their membership.
Look in your area to see if there is a Law Centre, Citizens' Advice Bureau or similar to give you a small amount of legal advice. Ask at your local library. This may give you an idea as to how to proceed.

If you do decide to see a solicitor, the more information you can present clearly, the shorter and cheaper the consultation will be.