Thanks to Julia Gillard, most of these covenants are not worth the paper they are written on.
The essential element of a covenant, is that the creation of the covenant is not for the benefit of the individual, but rather it is for the benefit of the land. Arguably the most famous maxim which encapsulates the rule in relation to covenants, is that the covenant must ‘touch and concern’ the land.
What are the requirements of a valid covenant?
In order for a covenant to be enforceable at common law, the ‘touch and concern’ test is applied to ascertain whether the covenant is for the benefit of the land? Or was the covenant created by the covenantee as a mere personal interest? If the latter question is answered in the affirmative, the covenant will generally be considered invalid.