Section 111 Property and Conveyancing Law of the Western Region of Nigeria 1959

Section 111 of the Property and Conveyancing Law of the Western Region of Nigeria 1959 is about Realization of freehold mortgages. It provides as follows:

(1) Where an estate in fee simple has been mortgaged by the creation of a term
of years absolute limited thereout or by a charge by way of legal mortgage and the
mortgagee sells under his statutory or express power of sale

(a) the conveyance by him shall operate to vest in the purchaser the fee simple in the land conveyed subject to any legal mortgage having priority to the mortgage in right of which the sale is made and to any money thereby secured and thereupon;

(b) the mortgage term or the charge by way of legal mortgage and any subsequent
mortgage term or charges shall merge or be extinguished as respects the land
conveyed;
and such conveyance may, as respects the fee simple, be made in the name of the
estate owner in whom it is vested.

(2) Where any such mortgagee obtains an order for foreclosure absolute, the order
shall operate to vest the fee simple in him (subject to any legal mortgage having
priority to the mortgage in right of which the foreclosure is obtained and to any
money thereby secured), and thereupon the mortgage term, if any, shall thereby be
merged in the fee simple, and any subsequent mortgage term or charge by way of
legal mortgage bound by the order shall thereupon be extinguished.

(3) Where any such mortgagee acquires a title under the Limitation Law, he, or the
persons deriving title under him, may enlarge the mortgage term into a fee simple
under the statutory power for that purpose discharged from any legal mortgage
affected by the title so acquired, or in the case of a chargee by way of legal mortgage may by deed declare that the fee simple is vested in him discharged as aforesaid, and the same shall vest accordingly.

(4) Where the mortgage includes fixtures or chattels personal any statutory power of
sale and any right to foreclose or take possession shall extend to the absolute or other interest therein affected by the charge.

(5) In the case of a sub-mortgage by subdemise of a long term (less a nominal period) itself limited out of an estate in fee simple, the foregoing provisions of this section shall operate as if the derivative term, if any, created by the sub-mortgage had been limited out of the fee simple, and so as to enlarge the principal term and extinguish the derivative term created by the submortgage as aforesaid, and to enable the submortgagee to convey the fee simple or acquire it by foreclosure, enlargement, or otherwise as aforesaid.

(6) This section applies to a mortgage whether created before or after the
commencement of this Law, and to a mortgage term created by this Law, but does not operate to confer a better title to the fee simple than would have been acquired
if the same had been conveyed by the mortgage (being a valid mortgage) and the
restrictions imposed by this Law in regard to the effect and creation of mortgages
were not in force, and all prior mortgages (if any) not being merely equitable charges had been created by demise or by charge by way of legal mortgage.