A dime a thousand

The many Lords and Ladies of Glencoe and the matter of souvenir Scottish titles

No true Scotsman…buys souvenir plots

Advertisements for a small block of land and an accompanying Scottish title have cluttered the promotional section of weekend editions and the side bars of websites. They remained on my periphery until recently when a media commentary YouTube channel I frequent aired their own promotion for such an enterprise. I always relegated these schemes (and the spin-off industry of naming/owning a star) not as an outright scam but more of a scheme where everyone is in on the joke of some obscure loophole in Scotland's property laws.

Selling of souvenir plots has been a cottage industry in the United Kingdom for almost 50 years. For a pocketful of dollars, one could purchase a little piece of Scotland and call themselves a Laird, Lord, or Lady. Sir Geoffrey Howe, then solicitor-general, summed up the appeal of these plots very nicely in his 1971 speech to the House of Commons:

“A trade had grown up in recent years in order to please tourists mainly from North America … whereby they are able to purchase a ‘square foot of Old England' for a comparatively modest sum.... It helps the balance of payments..... and it gladdens the hearts of our continental cousins and enables them to obtain a splendidly medieval looking deed of title, which, no doubt, they display at some appropriate place in their homes."

The question is: can you really buy land and a piece of the peerage for $60?

The answer, once you read the fine print, is no!

The potential profit is tidy. Highland Titles Ltd. sells a variety of plots from starting at $60 NZD for 1 square-foot to $300 NZD for 100 square-feet. Taking a look at the math, selling a smaller portion of land is far more profitable than selling a larger one; with more than 400 acres of land available spread out over 5 reserves, they are unlikely to run out of space anytime soon. Even better, in the not so fine print of the website they state that they maintain ownership and management of the land. Established Titles, owned by Hong Kong competitor Katerina Yip/Galton Voysey, has a different pricing scheme with the smallest plot going for approximately $50 NZD and 10 square-foot plots selling for $350.

So what loophole do these schemes exploit?

Regarding the use of titles, subject to good faith there are no obstacles to calling yourself a Laird, Lord, or Lady in Scotland. However, it is not possible to buy nobility titles. Elizabeth Roads, clerk for The Court of the Lord Lyon and keeper of the records (which oversees heraldry matters) makes it quite clear souvenir plot owners are ineligible for a coat of arms or real claims to said titles. According to the Court, titles of Lord and Lady do not relate to ownership of the land; Laird is not a title attached to a personal name but a specific description applied to a sizable parcel of land.

To manoeuvre around this, some sellers stretch their intellectual property to the legal limit. Highland Titles Ltd claim they are being tongue-in-cheek by giving buyers permission to use their registered trademarks of Laird of Glencoe™, Lord of Glencoe™ and Lady of Glencoe™. As this is not a true aristocratic title, it should not be stated on a passport or other forms of identification but, some reports indicate otherwise.

As for the land, again, it's all smoke and mirrors.

In 1979, souvenir plots were defined in Scottish law in section 4(1)b of the Land Registration Act of 1979, whereby a souvenir plot of land is land “…being of inconsiderable size or no practical utility, is unlikely to be wanted in isolation except for the sake of mere ownership or for sentimental reasons or commemorative purposes”. Consequently, these pieces of land cannot be registered in the Land Registry or the General Register of Sasines. In 2012, updates to Section 22 of the Land Registration (Scotland) Act 2012 go further by replacing the or with and with further caveats of the land neither being a registered plot nor ownership of which being transferred or constituted in the Register of the Sasines at any time.

The Buyer is not conferred with real rights in the eyes of Scots Property Law, only a contractual right with the Seller. It is a nuance in Scots law that distinguishes between real and personal rights. Without registration, the buyer only has personal and not real right of ownership. Should the land in question be bought by a second-party in a manner that enables them to register the land, the original purchaser could not prevent that sale and may only be able to seek legal remedy from the seller. To the credit of these companies, there is no evidence of double selling plots and guarantees that your plot is “yours” appears “genuine”; you can even pass the land down to your descendants.

During Howe's original speech, he was concerned that including souvenir plots in the Land Registry would quickly overwhelm the resources available. In England, where similar schemes operated, the government changed their laws in 2002 to require the registration of souvenir plots and appeared to have coped alright.

In recent years, the business model has survived as companies change tactics. Some lean more on the novelty element while others emphasise their conservation partnerships. Bandai Namco recently partnered with Highland Titles in promoting the recent release of the game Elden Ring, hosting a competition in which a souvenir plot was the main prize. Highland Titles has also popped up in Oscar news with plots being included in the infamous nominee gift bags. Regardless of how they rebrand, these business models must be scrutinised. When doubled-up with a conservation project, there is a lack of transparency and oversight with how these businesses operate and develop the land as nature reserves while also promising clients access to their “plot” and not releasing financial reports. In Scotland, these sales are seen as demeaning and criticise them for the commodification of the country. Most importantly, people do buy into these schemes believing that they legitimately did confer some form of rights and ownership, whether it is a square of unsightly land in Scotland or naming a star millions of light years away. Given that the Court of Lord Lyon does receive applications for a coat of arms for these plots, these schemes are a lot less fun and a lot more exploitative.

Until these companies engage in more honest advertising practices, skeptics in NZ can make complaints to the ASA or to the content provider and social media outlet if and when these schemes are promoted.