An Application for Removal of the Name of a Deceased Joint Proprietor from the Register (Form LRA 38) is an official document used in Kenya to update land records following the death of a joint tenant, allowing surviving co-owners to be registered as sole proprietors. This jurisdiction-specific form is prescribed under the Land Registration Act and the Land Registration (General) Regulations, 2017, specifically Rule 54(1). It implements the right of survivorship inherent in joint tenancy, automatically vesting ownership in surviving joint proprietors.
This form is intended for surviving joint proprietors, joint tenants, spouses, family members, business partners, and their legal representatives who held property jointly with a deceased person under joint tenancy. Unlike tenancy in common where shares pass to heirs, joint tenancy includes automatic right of survivorship—when one joint tenant dies, their interest automatically passes to the surviving joint tenant(s). This form formalizes that legal transition by removing the deceased's name from the register.
The application requires the title number, date of application, names and addresses of all joint proprietors on the register, details of the applicant(s) who are the surviving joint proprietor(s), and name and address of the deceased joint proprietor. Critically, applicants must attach and produce a certified copy of the death certificate of the deceased joint proprietor as proof of death. This is a mandatory supporting document without which the application cannot be processed.
The surviving joint proprietor(s) must execute the application with colored photographs, identification numbers, PIN numbers, and signatures verified by certifying officers. Once registered and sealed by the Land Registrar, the deceased's name is removed from the register and the surviving proprietor(s) become the sole registered owner(s), holding the property either individually if one survivor remains, or continuing as joint proprietors if multiple survivors remain, within Kenya's land registration system.