Also known as: good titles · marketable title
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
An ownership interest in property that is free from valid defects or adverse claims. In a land contract the seller must deliver good title at closing, though many contracts impose the stricter marketable-title standard instead.
Gareth Glover contracts to sell land to Gloria Green. A title search reveals an unreleased lien from a prior judgment against Glover. Green refuses to close because the lien creates reasonable doubt about clear ownership. Glover cannot cure within the contract period, so Green rescinds and recovers her deposit.
Granite Holdings agrees to convey a parcel to Glacier Energy. The chain of title shows an outstanding easement for a neighboring utility line that the seller cannot release before closing. Glacier Energy treats the easement as a defect that prevents good title and declines to perform. The contract permits rescission when the seller fails to cure.
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Grandview Holdings sells property to Global Dynamics under a contract requiring marketable title. A recorded covenant appears on the commitment, but the title company offers to insure at standard rates. Global Dynamics still refuses because the covenant creates doubt a prudent buyer would not accept. The contract does not accept insurable title as a substitute.
Gregory Gates leases property to Guillermo Guzman. After taking possession Guzman discovers a prior recorded interest that prevents Gates from delivering clear ownership. Guzman sues for breach of the implied covenant that the lessor holds good title. The court examines whether the defect existed at the time of the lease grant.
Georgia Gibbs discovers a valuable item on land owned by Glenn Gross. Gross asserts superior title as the freeholder even though he never occupied the premises. Gibbs claims good title as finder against all but the true owner. The court weighs whether the landowner's non-possession defeats the finder's claim.
A collector purchases a painting from a dealer without knowledge of its theft decades earlier. The original owner later locates the work and sues to recover it. The purchaser asserts good title through a chain of good-faith transfers. The court decides whether the statute of limitations or discovery rule bars the original owner's claim.
Good title requires actual ownership free of valid defects. Marketable title additionally demands freedom from reasonable doubt that would cause a prudent purchaser to reject it. Contracts may require one or the other standard at closing.
Unreleased liens, breaks in the chain of title, outstanding easements or covenants, and adverse claims all render title defective. A buyer may refuse to close or rescind when the seller cannot cure these defects.
Merger generally discharges contract promises not restated in the deed. Claims survive only for fraud, mutual mistake, or collateral undertakings that the parties intended to keep separate from the conveyance.
…adoption of a discovery rule will create uncertainty in the art market. Purchasers of art will never be certain that they have good title if the original owner can claim the work many years later upon “discovering” its location. The plaintiff is a sophisticated artist who knew her paintings were stolen. She had a duty to…