After being introduced as a private member's bill by Sir Robert Richard Torrens, it was passed by both houses and assented to by the Governor of South Australia, on 27 January 1858.

He was elected as a member of the House of Assembly for the City of Adelaide[1] in the new parliament in 1857,[2] and on 1 September 1857 became the third Premier, although his government lasted only a month.

[6] The act, eagerly anticipated by many, came into effect on 2 July 1858 and was on the whole well-received,[7] apart from some lawyers who would have noted that the ease and clarity of the process would mean less in earnings for them in the future.

[6] Four main principles underlie the act:[3] The first sale of land registered under the system was to pastoralist William Ransom Mortlock (later elected to the House of Assembly[12]) on 25 August 1858.

[14] He also helped the other colonies to introduce their own variations of the system: Queensland adopted the 1859 version, while New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria based their legislation on the 1861 reforms.

[6] In 1862, Torrens published A handy book on the Real Property Act of South Australia:...,[15] which is now available in full online.

[20][21] South Australia has been a world leader in creating digital versions of property title data[3] since the late 20th century, with its Land Ownership and Tenure System, or LOTS.

[24] He also said that the idea was based on principles used in transferring shipping property,[6] of which he would have gained experience in his early career as a customs official, both in London and Adelaide (1836–1852).

Burford and lawyers such as Richard Bullock Andrews, Henry Gawler and W.C. Belt, would have influenced him close to home.

[3] With the support of Carl Muecke and the influential German community,[27] he fought it through Parliament despite virulent opposition from the legal profession.