Hawaii's Land Court, also known as the Bureau of Conveyances Land Court Division, is a specialized division within the State of Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural Resources that serves as a unique system for registering and recording land ownership and interests in the state.
The primary purpose of Hawaii's Land Court is to provide a streamlined and centralized system for registering and recording land ownership and interests that offers a higher degree of certainty and security compared to the regular system of recording land transactions in Hawaii. The Land Court system was established in 1903 as a response to concerns about land title and ownership disputes in Hawaii, which had a complex history of land tenure and multiple land ownership systems.
The Land Court system in Hawaii operates based on the Torrens system, which is a method of land registration that seeks to simplify and standardize land ownership by creating a single, conclusive certificate of title for each parcel of land. In the Land Court system, land titles are registered and recorded with the Bureau of Conveyances Land Court Division, and once a title is registered, it is considered "indefeasible," meaning that it is presumed to be valid and conclusive unless challenged in court.
The Land Court system in Hawaii provides a number of benefits, including increased certainty of land ownership, simplified transfer of land titles, and a more efficient process for resolving land ownership disputes. It is commonly used for registering and recording land transactions involving real estate in Hawaii, and it is an important component of the state's real property law and conveyancing system.