Lessons for federal countries that have state land registries: the Australian experience

Abstract

The federation of Australia and her states have significantly improved land information management and integration since 1982: cadastres were digitized, land registries computerized, web based GIS was incorporated, and SDIs developed. However, the risk of a Land Information Babel as espoused by Justice Kirby in 1982 still remains, particularly in the realm of land registries. Australia is now entering the era of national approaches to land registration. The proposed national eConveyancing system represents the first step. Many more initiatives will follow. This paper presents a new multi-purpose vision for Australia’s land registries. The state based systems need to continue collaboration in order to build a coherent national vision based around key registries, spatial enablement, and shared services. The power inherent in all land registry information must be unleashed. Land registries are more than simply systems for conveyancing. They are multi-purpose tools with the capacity to service society with the information needed to respond to our most pressing challenges, increasingly with a national focus. Future work must focus on building agreement for this national vision, undertaking a major cost-benefit analysis, comparing existing technical platforms, and creating awareness at higher levels of Australia’s significant land information achievements.