False titles of nobility or royal title scams are claimed titles of social rank that have been fabricated or assumed by an individual or family without recognition by the authorities of a country in which titles of nobility exist or once existed. They have received an increasing amount of press attention, as more schemes that purport to confer or sell such honorifics are promoted on the internet. Concern about the use of titles which lack legal standing or a basis in tradition has prompted increased vigilance and denunciation, although under English common law a person may choose to be known by any name they see fit as long as it is not done to "commit fraud or evade an obligation".

Self-styled titles Outside monarchies, a distinction is drawn between a legitimate historical title which may no longer be recognised by a successor state (such as a republic) but is borne or claimed by a hereditary heir, and an invented or falsely-attributed noble title that is claimed without any historical basis.Pine, L.G. Titles: How the King Became His Majesty. Barnes & Noble, New York, 1992. pp. 8-11, 49. .

Self-assumption of a title is not necessarily illegal; it depends on the law of the place where the title is used. The bearers of some self-assumed titles do not claim that such titles have been recognized by any nation at any time.Example: Example: Where such titles have existed historically, the current bearer may make no claim that its use is pursuant to a hereditary grant to an ancestor by a fount of honor.

Some individuals, associations or corporations purport to grant or transmit a legal or official right to a title, honour, acknowledgement or membership in a self-styled order of chivalry simply in exchange for a payment.

British titles The British peerage includes the titles of (in ascending order) baron, viscount, earl, marquess and duke. All of these titleholders, except dukes, are (if male) known by the honorific "Lord" (in Scotland the lowest rank in the peerage is "Lord (of Parliament)" rather than "Baron"). No peerage can be created by monetary means; such a transaction would be in breach of the Honours (Prevention of Abuses) Act 1925. The British embassy in the United States informs that "the sale of British titles is prohibited".

Titles in the Scottish baronage are arguably the only British nobility titles that may be passed to any person, of either sex, by inheritance or conveyance.

Baronetcies are hereditary titles granted by the Crown, but are not part of the peerage. Baronets are styled "Sir" with the word "Baronet" (or the suffix "Bt." or "Bart.") after their surname. New baronetcies cannot be purchased, and existing ones cannot be bought or sold.

Persons who have been enrolled at higher levels in orders of chivalry are usually knights and (female equivalent) dames, and are thus entitled to the prefixes "Sir" and "Dame", respectively. These titles cannot be bought or sold, either.

The holder of a peerage, baronetcy or knighthood may not lawfully transfer those titles or any title associated with them to another individual. If a peerage is renounced, it devolves automatically upon the heir-at-law, usually by primogeniture, but in some cases by a special remainder. The incumbent has no right to designate a successor to the title.

Laird

Several websites and Internet vendors on websites such as eBay and Established Titles sell Scottish lairdships along with small plots of land, known as souvenir plots. However, they create no legal right of ownership or legal right of heraldry in Scots law.

The Court of the Lord Lyon (the heraldic court tasked with the award and regulation of heraldry) considers souvenir plot titles to be meaningless as the registration of numerous "lairds" of a single estate would pose too great an administrative burden. The opinion of the Lord Lyon has been criticised as the UK government allows the usage of Manorial Titles in British passports of the form: "THE HOLDER IS THE LORD OF THE MANOR/LAIRD OF [X]" (brackets added). However, as a matter of Scots property law, souvenir plots cannot competently create a real right of ownership in Scots law. The Land Registration (Scotland) Act 2012 forbids the registration of deeds relating to souvenir plots in the Land Register of Scotland.Caution the souvenir hunters Law Society of Scotland. 6 April 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2022 This means that the Buyer obtains no legal right of or to ownership of the souvenir plot in any event, so the evidence threshold required by HM Passport Office to use the Manorial Title will be unlikely to be met. Evidence of ownership of property would typically be the production of a Title Sheet to the property or a formal and valid disposition, which the souvenir plot documents are unlikely to contain.

Richard Bridgeman, 7th Earl of Bradford, estimates these sellers having an income of US$2,918,520 per acre (about US$7.2 million per hectare) of poor land, which he suggests could probably be purchased for about US$100.The Earl of Bradford, "Beware Buying British Titles on the Internet", Burke's Peerage & Gentry Some of these sellers enclose with the invalid deed a coat of arms; this is not authorised by the Lord Lyon, and so it is unlawful in Scotland to use it. The most recent advice from the Lord Lyon specifically states that the award of a coat of arms is not appropriate to the owner of a souvenir plot, such as sold in these schemes.

Manorial lordships The title lord of the manor has feudal origins and is a title of property ownership that is legally capable of sale. The owner of a Lordship of the Manor is known as [personal name], Lord/Lady of the Manor of [place name] it is also acceptable to shorten the title to Lord/Lady of [place name].Land Registry Guidance 1 According to the style guide Debrett's, a person owning a Scottish Barony title is afforded a particular style, but English lordships of the manor are not mentioned.

There are three elements to a manor: lordship of the manor, manorial land, manorial rights.

These three elements may exist separately or be combined; however the lordship of a manor may be held in moieties and may not be subdivided; this is prohibited by the Statute of Quia Emptores 1290, preventing subinfeudation (except in Scotland, where feudal rights resulting from subinfeudation were extinguished only with the Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000). However the second and third elements can be subdivided.Land Registry Guidance 2.1

In many cases, the title of lord of the manor may no longer be connected to land or other rights. In such cases, the title is known as an "incorporeal hereditament". Before the Land Registration Act 2002 it was possible to register lordship titles; most did not seek to register. Since 13 October 2003 one cannot apply for first registration of a title of a manor; however, dealings in previously registered titles remain subject to compulsory registration with HM Land Registry. A frequent criticism of the lordships sold at auction is that statutory declarations are relied upon to substitute for missing historical deeds and transfer documents which would, in some cases, demonstrate that the manor in question either no longer exists, can no longer be identified definitively or is not available for sale.

According to John Martin Robinson, Maltravers Herald Extraordinary and co-author of The Oxford Guide to Heraldry, "Lordship of this or that manor is no more a title than Landlord of The Dog and Duck" ("The Dog and Duck" being a stereotypical name for a pub, with "landlord" being the usual term for someone who runs such an establishment). However, the journal Justice of the Peace & Local Government Law advises that the position is unclear as to whether a lordship of the manor is a title of honour or a dignity, as this is yet to be tested by the courts.Justice of the Peace & Local Government Law (legal journal) Technically, lords of manors are barons, or freemen; however, they do not use the term as a title. John Selden, in Titles of Honour, wrote in 1672, "The word Baro (Latin for 'baron') hath been also so much communicated, that not only all Lords of Mannors have been from ancient time, and are at this day called sometimes Barons (as in the stile of their Court Barons, which is Curia Baronis, &c. And I have read hors de son Barony in a barr to an Avowry for hors de son fee) But also the Judges of the Exchequer have it from antient time fixed on them."

Some companies claim to be selling manorial lordships when in fact they are actually selling nothing more than a trademark. For this reason, careful legal advice should be sought before entering into any transaction purporting to be selling a lordship of a manor.

Channel Islands fiefs The Channel Islands have a long and storied history, with human habitation tracing back thousands of years. In 911 AD, the Viking leader Rollo was granted lands around Rouen that later evolved into the Duchy of Normandy. In the resource-scarce 10th century, land was the primary means of rewarding loyal followers.

Much like in France, the Channel Islands were organised into a feudal, pyramidal structure - with the King/Duke at the top, seigneurs (lords) in the middle, and residents/serfs at the bottom. Seigneurs held significant political, social, and economic rights over the inhabitants of their fiefs (estates).

While most feudal institutions have disappeared in the 21st century, the Channel Islands' unique system of fiefs has endured. A "seigneur" is the title given to the male lord of a manor, while a "dame" is the equivalent title for a female fief holder or the wife of a male seigneur.

Purchasing a Channel Island fief is possible for anyone, regardless of nationality or citizenship. However, this occurs infrequently, as fiefs tend to pass down within families. Conveyance requires legal representation, approval by the Royal Court of Guernsey or Jersey, and registration with the Greffier (record keeper).

The number of extant fiefs is estimated at 116 in Jersey, 73 in Guernsey, and 1 on Sark. At least 37 have been acquired by the Crown over time. Seigneurs often hold multiple fiefs - in Guernsey, 46 fiefs are held by just 24 seigneurs.

Channel Island seigneurs maintain significant rights and roles in the modern era. They can defend manorial rights in court, attend Royal Court annually to pay homage, and host traditional dinners. Fief courts, presided over by officials like the Sénéschal and Prévôt, still function with legal authority.

While smaller than English manors or Scottish baronies, Channel Island fiefs can still be substantial, with the largest (Fief le Roi in Guernsey) comprising over 800 acres. Fiefs often consisted of non-contiguous parcels across multiple parishes.

One enduring feudal institution is the congè - a tax paid upon the transfer of fief land. This tax survived in Guernsey until 1985, when it was redirected to the island government rather than the seigneur. On Sark, the congè persisted until 2006. The continued existence of this tax represents de facto recognition of the seigneurial system by the Crown.

Changes of name

Some companies sell individuals a title when in fact they do no more than offer them the facility to change their name. Such an individual adopts the purported title, e.g. "Sir" or "Lord", as a forename rather than receiving any formal title. This practice is lawful so long as no claim of noble title, knighthood etc. is made as, in British law, a person may adopt any name provided its purpose is not fraudulent. HM Passport Office is aware of this practice and will place an official observation in the individual's passport stating that the purported title is a name rather than the person's title.

English feudal baronial titles Whether English feudal barony titles are valid is unclear.

Continental European titles