Me. Rev. Stat. » Title 33
Maine Revised Statutes

Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 33, § 201 (2026)

Priority of recording

✓ current as of May 2026
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No conveyance of an estate in fee simple, fee tail or for life, or lease for more than 2 years or for an indefinite term is effectual against any person except the grantor, his heirs and devisees, and persons having actual notice thereof unless the deed or lease is acknowledged and recorded in the registry of deeds within the county where the land lies, and if the land is in 2 or more counties then the deed or lease shall be recorded in the registry of deeds of each of such counties, and in counties where there are 2 or more registry districts then the deed or lease shall be recorded in the district legal for such record. Conveyances of the right, title or interest of the grantor, if duly recorded, shall be as effectual against prior unrecorded conveyances, as if they purported to convey an actual title. All recorded deeds, leases or other written instruments regarding real estate take precedence over unrecorded attachments and seizures.  
A memorandum of lease of real estate may be recorded, and if so recorded, the lease shall be considered recorded for all purposes. Said memorandum shall be executed and acknowledged by one of the lessors, name all the parties to the lease, contain an intelligible description of the property leased, state the date and the term of the lease, describe any provisions related to renewals or extensions, describe any provisions relating to options to purchase or the transfer of title, but need not describe any provisions relating to rent. The recording of said memorandum shall constitute notice of all terms of the lease including all provisions relating to rental, price, considerations and default, as effectively as if said lease had been recorded in full. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to affect the validity of the recording of an abstract, memorandum or statement of lease prior to September 21, 1963, but any such abstract, memorandum or statement of lease recorded prior to September 21, 1963, shall be deemed to meet the requirements of a memorandum of lease made and recorded hereunder if it reasonably describes the parties to the lease and contains a reasonable description of the leased property.  
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Notes of Decisions
Cited in 32 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1973–2024 · leading case: Bay View Bank, N.A. v. Highland Golf Mortgagees Realty Trust, 2002 ME 178 (Me. 2002).
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Bay View Bank, N.A. v. Highland Golf Mortgagees Realty Trust, 2002 ME 178 (Me. 2002). · cites it 3× “” 33 M.R.S.A. § 201 (1999). The statute further provides that “[clon-veyances of the right, title or interest of the grantor, if duly recorded, shall be effectual against prior unrecorded conveyances, as if they purported to convey an actual title.”
Spickler v. Ginn, 2012 ME 46 (Me. 2012). · cites it 6× “Adah does not challenge the jury’s or the court’s factual findings, but appeals from the court’s entry of a judgment on those findings awarding ownership of the property to Robert.”
Homeward Residential, Inc. v. Marianne A. Gregor, 2015 ME 108 (Me. 2015). · cites it 2× “See 33 M.R.S. § 201 (2014); Spickler v. Ginn, 2012 ME 46, ¶ 10, 18 , 40 A.”
Dionne v. LeClerc, 2006 ME 34 (Me. 2006). “220 (now codified at 33 M.R.S. § 201 (2005)). The referee was correct, therefore, to conclude that the Dionnes had superior record title.”
Rebecca W. Belanger v. Lisa M. Yorke, 2020 ME 24 (Me. 2020). “§ 480 (1999);3 that she held superior title by operation of the Maine Recording Act, 33 M.R.S. § 201; that Yorke’s deed was invalid because it failed to adequately describe the property; that Yorke was estopped from claiming a right to the property by the affirmative defenses of…”
Keybank Nat'l Ass'n v. Sargent, 2000 ME 153 (Me. 2000). “See 33 M.R.S.A. § 201 (1999). The court entered final judgment not only in CV-98-33, but also in CV-96-82 and CV-97-21 as well.”
Greenpoint Mortg. Funding, Inc. v. Schlossberg, 888 A.2d 297 (Md. 2005). “3751, §§ 3750-53 (constructive notice commences upon recording of Notice); MeRev.Stat. Ann tit. 33, § 201 (constructive notice commences upon acknowledgment and recording of Notice); Mass Gen.”
Nationstar Mortg. LLC v. Timothy E. Halfacre, 2016 ME 97 (Me. 2016). “3 See 33 M.R.S. § 201 (2015); Spickler v. Ginn, 2012 ME 46, ¶ 12, 40 A.”
In Re Somero, 122 B.R. 634 (Bankr. D. Me. 1991). “Title 33 M.R.S.A. § 201 provides the Maine law on recording priorities for real property interests.”
Bartlett v. Pullen, 586 A.2d 1263 (Me. 1991). “Maine’s recording statute, which provides that unrecorded conveyances are ineffectual against anyone other than the grantor and persons having actual notice, 33 M.R.S.A. § 201 (1988), is applicable only to competing conveyances of the same property.”
Gagner v. Kittery Water Dist., 385 A.2d 206 (Me. 1978). “2 The validity of the District’s unrecorded water pipe easement as against the Gagners depends upon our applying to the facts of this case the governing Maine recording statute, 33 M.R.S.A. § 201 (1964), providing in pertinent part that “[n]o conveyance of an estate in fee…”
Dwyer v. Rockland Trust Co. (In re Mammola), 474 B.R. 23 (Bankr. D. Mass. 2012). “Me.Rev. Stat. tit. 33 § 201. The bankruptcy appellate panel nevertheless ruled that the recorded certificate of foreclosure gave inquiry notice concerning the mistaken discharge.”
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