New land and property information system for Scotland

Deputy First Minister John Swinney has announced the development of a land and property information hub for Scotland.

The Keeper of the Registers of Scotland (RoS), Sheenagh Adams, will lead a task force to develop an online system that will allow users to find out comprehensive information about any piece of land or property in Scotland with a single enquiry. The task force has been asked to report to the Deputy First Minister by July this year.

Sheenagh Adams said: “The creation of a land and property information system for Scotland is an exciting development that fits with our current project of completing the land register. Not only will this system make our economy more efficient, but it will reduce both the risks and costs of doing business. Developing the system will involve providing access to the data contained across a wide range of sources. This will remove the current costs and barriers sometimes involved with searching for land and property information.”

Professor Stewart Brymer has agreed to be a member of the task force in his capacity as Chair of Unifi Scotland (www.unifiscotland.com) He commented: “We have a great opportunity to build a spatial information system in Scotland that could be the best in the world. The data is all available but it is held in a range of disparate places. Bringing it together will benefit the economy and increase the knowledge that citizens should have about land and property. There are some excellent systems in other countries such as Norway which can be learned from in creating a digital land and property information service in Scotland.”

What is the Law in your Life?

5 things you need to know when choosing a name for your company or LLP:

1.   Your name cannot be identical to that of another registered company/LLP. Your name must also not be “too similar” to another name on the Companies House register. When considering whether your name is the same as a name that is already registered there is a list of words, characters, and symbols which are disregarded (eg United Kingdom and Great Britain). (Following recent changes in the law (January 2015), a number of words have been deleted from this list. The words Exports, Holdings, Imports, Group, International, and Services are now no longer on the list.).

2.   If your proposed name contains a “sensitive” word or expression (eg the word Scottish, English, British, etc) you must get prior approval from the Secretary of State. Likewise, if your name might indicate a connection to a public authority. The recent changes in the law referred to above have also reduced the list of sensitive words and expressions that require prior approval.

3.   Names that are offensive or use of which would constitute a criminal offence cannot be used.

4.   The names of most private limited companies must either end in “Limited” or “Ltd”. You can, however, apply to leave “limited” out of your name if the company is limited by guarantee and it fulfils certain conditions.

5.   You are prohibited from using the name of a previously insolvent company. You also cannot use a similar name to a previously insolvent company for a period of five years from the date of the first company’s insolvent liquidation.