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LEGAL UPDATES |
Legislation
The High Court (Admiralty Jurisdiction) (Amendment) Act 2004 (‘Act’) came into force on 1 April 2004. The Act amends the provisions of the High Court (Admiralty Jurisdiction) Act (Cap 123) to extend the right of arrest of a ship to include a ship which is under a demise charter to the person who would be liable in an action in personam (‘relevant person’).
The amendment allows a ship on demise charter to be arrested as security for a claim against such a demise charterer where the other requirements of the High Court (Admiralty Jurisdiction) Act are met. However, the amendment does not affect an arrest of a ‘sister ship’. In the case of an arrest of a sister ship, it will still be necessary to show that the relevant person was, at the time when the action is brought, the beneficial owner of all the shares of such ship.
In a consequential amendment, the Rules of Court (Amendment) Rules 2004 (S122/2004) has been enacted to amend O 70 r 4 of the Rules of Court (pertaining to ‘Admiralty Proceedings’) with effect from 1 April 2004.
Presently, O 70 r 4(7)(c) provides that every affidavit in an action in rem brought against a ship by virtue of s 4(4) of the High Court (Admiralty Jurisdiction) Act, must state that at the time of the issue of the writ the relevant person was the beneficial owner of all the shares in the ship in respect of which the warrant is required.
With effect from 1 April 2004, O 70 r 4(7)(c) has been amended such that the affidavit must state ‘that at the time of the issue of the writ the relevant person was either the beneficial owner of all the shares in the ship in respect of which the warrant is required or the charterer of that ship under a charter by demise’.
The Statutes (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 2004 makes amendments including the following, which are operative from 8 March 2004:
• repealing and re-enacting s 163 of the Bankruptcy Act (Cap 20) to require the Official Assignee to maintain:
— a list of undischarged bankrupts; and
— a record of every bankruptcy order and every order rescinding, annulling or discharging any bankruptcy order, and to allow any person, on payment of the prescribed fee, to inspect or otherwise have access to any part of such list or record as the Official Assignee may determine.
Provision is also made for a certificate issued by the Official Assignee stating whether or not a person is an undischarged bankrupt to be prima facie evidence of the facts so stated;
• introducing a new s 199A in the Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68) to allow for the composition of prescribed offences under Acts that do not currently have a provision for the composition of offences; and
• amending the Probate and Administration Act (Cap 251) to provide for the Public Trustee to take over the functions of the official assignee under that Act.
The Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (Amendment) Bill 2004 (‘Bill’) was introduced in Parliament on 17 March 2004. The Bill seeks to amend the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore (1999 Reprint) to effect the following changes:
• to make a consequential amendment to Art 18 arising from the merger of the Public Accountants Board with the Registry of Companies and Businesses to form the new Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority established under the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority Act 2004 (Act 3 of 2004);
• to enable every personnel board to delegate all or any of its powers or functions (other than the power of delegation) to any of its members to exercise;
• to allow Singapore citizenship to be acquired by children born overseas to mothers who are citizens and to any parent who is a citizen by descent who satisfies certain residency requirements;
• to make a consequential amendment to Art 144 arising from the amendment made to the International Development Association Act (Cap 144A) by the International Development Association (Amendment) Bill 2004; and
• to allow for the transfer of reserves between:
(i) the Government and any statutory board specified in Part I of the Fifth Schedule or any Government company specified in Part II of that Schedule; and
(ii) between any statutory board specified in Part I of the Fifth Schedule and any Government company specified in Part II of that Schedule,
without causing a draw on the past reserves of the Government or such statutory board or Government company.
The Trade Unions (Amendment) Bill (B13/2004) (‘Bill’), which was introduced in Parliament on 19 March 2004.
The Bill seeks to amend the Trade Unions Act (Cap 333) to confer on the officers of a trade union and any other persons duly appointed by the trade union to represent its members at collective agreement negotiations, the authority to bind all the members by the collective agreement, without the need for ratification by the members.
This amendment will override any existing or future rule or resolution of a trade union, and any such rule or resolution of a trade union that is inconsistent with the new section will be void to the extent of its inconsistency.
Elizabeth Wong
Allen & Gledhill