[RES-2025-12-03-007]

Here’s the best accurate snapshot for WESTERN AUSTRALIA only, based on the current WA legislation tables (not theory, not guesswork).

Key source: “Table 2 — Imperial Acts that operate in Western Australia” on the WA legislation site.Legislation WA

Below I’ve filtered that list down to UK/Imperial Acts that are both:

• still operating in WA, and

• materially relevant to land, property, or trusts,

and I’ve noted where WA Acts have later modified or largely replaced their effect.

1. Statute of Frauds 1677 (Imp)

• Citation: 29 Car II c 3

• Status in WA:

  • Confirmed as an Imperial Act that operates in Western Australia.Legislation WA+1

  • Specifically administered under “Statute of Frauds (1677) (Imp)” on the Department of Justice list.Western Australian Government

  • Section 4 continues in force, but in amended form under the Law Reform (Statute of Frauds) Act 1962 (WA).Legislation WA

• What it does (in WA now):

  • Governs formalities for certain contracts, especially those “to be charged upon any contract or sale of lands, tenements or hereditaments”.

  • The 1962 Act preserves s 4 but deletes some old categories (executor’s promise, marriage consideration, “not to be performed within a year”).Legislation WA

  • Still used as an underpinning for writing requirements in contracts affecting land and certain other obligations, alongside modern WA legislation (Property Law Act 1969, Transfer of Land Act 1893, etc.).studylib.net

Bottom line:
Statute of Frauds 1677 (Imp) remains in force in WA, heavily focused (now) on writing requirements for certain contracts, especially land-related ones, subject to the 1962 WA reform Act.

2. Prescription Act 1832 (Imp)

• Citation: 2 & 3 Will IV c 71

• Status in WA:

  • Listed among Imperial Acts that operate in Western Australia.Legislation WA

  • Was adopted into WA law by the Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1836.Wikipedia+1

  • As of January 2021 it was still in force in WA; no repeal is shown in the latest WA table of operating imperial Acts.Wikipedia+1

• What it does (in WA):

  • Deals with acquisition of easements and certain profits by long use (prescriptive periods — e.g. rights of way, light, etc.).

  • The structure is notoriously criticised as badly drafted, but in WA it still provides the core prescriptive framework unless displaced by specific WA legislation in particular contexts.Wikipedia

Bottom line:
Prescription Act 1832 (Imp) still operates in WA and is directly relevant to land and easements (rights acquired by long-term use).

3. Inheritance Amendment Act 1833 (Imp)

• Citation: 3 & 4 Will IV c 106

• Status in WA:

  • Listed in Table 2 — Imperial Acts that operate in Western Australia as “Inheritance amendment (1833) (Imp)”.Legislation WA

  • Adopted by the Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1836.Legislation WA

• What it does (in WA):

  • Part of the old English law of real property and succession, especially on descent of real estate.

  • Some of its field has been overtaken by WA Acts (e.g. Administration Act 1903, Property Law Act 1969, Wills Act 1970), but to the extent not expressly repealed, its provisions still form part of the underlying rules of inheritance of real property.

Bottom line:
Inheritance Amendment (1833) (Imp) is an operating Imperial statute in WA, historically central to succession and property, though much overlaid by modern WA succession and property statutes.

4. Infants’ Property Act 1830 (Imp) – being repealed / obsolete

• Citation: 11 Geo IV & 1 Will IV c 65

• Previously:

  • Listed as an operating Imperial Act in WA and administered by the Department of Justice.Legislation WA+2Legislation WA+2

  • Directly concerned property of infants and persons of unsound mind (real and personal).Wikipedia

• Recent development:

  • The Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Bill 2025 specifically repeals the Infants’ Property Act 1830 (Imp) so far as it is part of WA law, on the basis that its protections are now fully covered by WA Acts (Supreme Court Act 1935, Trustees Act 1962, Administration Act 1903, Land Administration Act 1997, etc.).Parliament of Western Australia+1

  • That Bill has now been assented to as Act No. 14 of 2025.Parliament of Western Australia

Bottom line:
Historically a key Imperial statute on trust-like control of infants’ property, but now repealed in WA (effective from 25 September 2025) and replaced wholly by local WA legislation.

5. Judgments Act 1839 (Imp) & Judgments Act 1855 (Imp)

• Citations:

  • 2 & 3 Vict c 11 (Judgments Act 1839)

  • 18 & 19 Vict c 15 (Judgments Act 1855)

• Status in WA:

  • Both appear in Table 2 — Imperial Acts that operate in Western Australia.Legislation WA

  • They were adopted via the Imperial Acts Adopting Ordinance 1867.Legislation WA+1

• BUT:

  • The WA compilation notes show that the relevant sections of these Acts, so far as they were part of WA law, have since been repealed by later WA legislation (notably the Courts Legislation Amendment and Repeal Act 2004).Legislation WA

• Relevance to land/property:

  • Historically, these Acts governed the effect of judgments as charges on land, registration of judgments, etc.

  • Now, their field is substantively covered by WA statutes (Supreme Court Act 1935, local property/land titles legislation).

Bottom line:
They are listed in the Imperial Acts adoption table, but in practical terms their operative content in WA has been repealed. They have historical relevance to land charges and enforcement, but current law comes from WA legislation.

6. Perpetuation of Testimony Act 1842 (Imp)

• Citation: 5 & 6 Vict c 69

• Status in WA:

  • Included in Table 2 — Imperial Acts that operate in WA.Legislation WA

  • Adopted via the Imperial Acts Adopting Act 1844.Legislation WA+1

• What it does (re property):

  • Deals with perpetuation of testimony — preserving evidence (often in relation to title to land or property) before litigation or events that might destroy proof.

  • Indirectly but significantly related to land and property disputes, particularly where long-term documentary evidence is critical.

Bottom line:
Still operates in WA and can be relevant where someone wants to secure evidence about property/land rights in advance of actual proceedings.

7. Marriage Act 1835 (Imp) – limited property relevance

• Citation: 5 & 6 Will IV c 54

• Status in WA:

  • Listed as an operating Imperial Act in WA.Legislation WA+1

• Relevance to property:

  • Primarily about validity of marriages (especially voiding certain incestuous or prohibited marriages).

  • Its property relevance is indirect, via legitimacy, succession, and matrimonial property consequences, now heavily overlaid with Australian and WA family law.

Bottom line:
Still technically operating, but its role in property/land is indirect and mostly historical, as modern property/succession distribution is governed by WA statutes.

8. Mercantile Law Amendment Act 1856 (Imp)

• Citation: 19 & 20 Vict c 97

• Status in WA:

  • Listed both in Imperial Acts adopted and Imperial Acts that operate.Legislation WA+1

  • Adopted by Imperial Acts Adopting Ordinance 1867.Legislation WA+1

  • Some sections have been effectively superseded by WA statutes (Sale of Goods Act 1895, Partnership Act 1895, Limitation Act 1935, etc.).Legislation WA

• Relevance to property/trusts:

  • Deals with assignment of debts, joint debtors, and some equitable/contractual property rules.

  • It is more about personal property/obligations than land, but it definitely touches property rights, especially choses in action and commercial obligations.

Bottom line:
Still operates in part in WA, but in a residual, gap-filling role; large parts of its subject matter have been replaced by local WA statutes.

9. Any Imperial “trust powers” statutes?

From the Imperial Acts Adopting Ordinance 1867 notes, a number of 19th-century UK Acts giving trustees’ powers were adopted (e.g. Acts “to give to Trustees, Mortgagees, and others certain powers now commonly inserted in Settlements, Mortgages, and Wills”).

However, those Acts have, over time, been repealed in WA and replaced by:

• Trustees Act 1962 (WA), and

• Property Law Act 1969 (WA),

with the compilation notes explicitly recording repeal of each imperial trust-powers act “so far as it was part of the law of WA”.Legislation WA

Bottom line:
As at late 2025, no substantial UK “trusts” Act remains directly operative in WA. Trust law is now governed almost entirely by WA statutes and common law/equity, with imperial trust-power statutes formally repealed or functionally superseded.

🔐 Consolidated Answer (WA only)

As of now, for Western Australia, the main UK/Imperial statutes still in force and relevant to land, property, or related obligations are:

1. Statute of Frauds 1677 (Imp) – still in force (s 4 in amended form), contracts affecting land and certain obligations.Legislation WA+1

2. Prescription Act 1832 (Imp) – still in force, prescriptive rights/easements.Legislation WA+1

3. Inheritance Amendment Act 1833 (Imp) – still in force, historic inheritance rules for real property, overlaid by modern WA succession law.Legislation WA

4. Perpetuation of Testimony Act 1842 (Imp) – still in force, preservation of evidence, often relevant in property/title disputes.Legislation WA+1

5. Marriage Act 1835 (Imp) – still in force, indirect property implications via marriage/legitimacy.Legislation WA+1

6. Mercantile Law Amendment Act 1856 (Imp) – still in force in part, commercial/property obligations, but heavily superseded.Legislation WA+1

Recently removed / being removed:

• Infants’ Property Act 1830 (Imp) – historically important for trust-like control of infants’ property, but now repealed in WA by the Statutes (Repeals and Minor Amendments) Act 2025.Parliament of Western Australia+1

And trust law proper is now governed by WA’s Trustees Act 1962, Property Law Act 1969, and equity, not surviving UK trust-power statutes.

If you like, I can next:

• turn this into a one-page “WA Imperial Property Statutes” cheat sheet (for quick citation in pleadings/notices), or

• expand this to Option B (all States/Territories) using their respective Imperial Acts Application/Adoption Acts.