Legislation

Registered Designs (Amendment) Act (A44/2004)

The Registered Designs (Amendment) Act (A44/2004) came into operation from 1 January 2005.

The Registered Designs Act (Cap 266) is amended for the following purposes:

•     to enable Singapore to give effect to the Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs signed at Geneva on 2 July 1999 (Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement), which Singapore is required to accede to under Article 2.2 of Annex XII of the European Free Trade Association States-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (‘ESFTA’) concluded in 2002;

•     to modify certain administrative procedures and practices; and

•     to restate the law on certain matters.

Trustees (Amendment) Act 2004 (A45/2004)

The Trustees (Amendment) Act 2004 came into operation from 15 December 2004.

The Trustees Act (Cap 337) is amended to update the law relating to trusts and thereby facilitate and promote wealth management in Singapore. In doing so, the Trustees (Amendment) Act 2004 gives effect to various recommendations of the Law Reform Committee of the Singapore Academy of Law and feedback received by the Ministry of Law following a public consultation.

The Trustees (Amendment) Act 2004 also makes related and consequential amendments to the Civil Law Act, the Interpretation Act, and certain other written laws.

Most notably, a new Part IA (consisting of a new s 3A) is introduced. New s 3A spells out the statutory duty of care that trustees must exercise when exercising any power, carrying out any duty or doing any act referred to in the new First Sch. This new duty of care applies to all trustees, irrespective of whether the trust was created before, on or after 15 December 2004, unless it appears from the trust instrument that a different duty of care is to apply.

Sections 4, 5 and 6 are re-enacted with amendments.

•     new s 4 spells out the general power of investment that a trustee may exercise;

•     new s 5 sets out the standard investment criteria that a trustee must have regard to when exercising any power of investment; and

•     new s 6 requires a trustee to obtain and consider proper advice before exercising his power of investment.

Further, two new Parts are introduced, namely, Part IVA, which relates to the appointment by a trustee of agents, nominees and custodians, and Part IVB, which relates to the remuneration of a trustee.

Competition Act 2004 (A46/2004)

The Competition Act was passed on 19 October 2004. The Competition Act is enacted for the purposes of:

•     making provision about competition and the abuse of a dominant position in the market; and

•     establishing and incorporating a new public corporation to be called the Competition Commission of Singapore (the ‘Commission’) and for the transfer of the functions, property, liabilities and employees of the Market Analysis Division of the Ministry of Trade and Industry to the Commission.

Pursuant to the Competition Act (Commencement) Notification 2004 (S707/2004), Parts I and II of, and the First and Second Schedules to, the Competition Act 2004 came into operation on 1 January 2005.

Parts I and II of, and the First and Second Schedules to, the Competition Act relate to the following:

Part I          –     Preliminary

Part II         –     Competition Commission                   of Singapore

First Sch    –     Constitution and                          proceedings of

                         Commission

Second Sch  – Powers of

                         Commission

Copyright (Amendment) Act 2004 (A52/2004)

Pursuant to the Copyright (Amendment) Act (Commencement) Notification 2004 (S742/2004), the Copyright (Amendment) Act 2004 came into operatio n on 1 January 2005. The Copyright Act (Cap 63) is amended to implement certain obligations relating to copyright undertaken by Singapore under the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement concluded in 2003.

Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Act 2004 (A54/2004)

Pursuant to the Electronic Transactions (Amendment) Act (Commencement) Notification 2004 (S751/2004), the amendments to the Electronic Transactions Act (Cap 88) came into force on 1 January 2005.

The Electronic Transactions Act is amended to facilitate the implementation of certain obligations pertaining to copyright undertaken by Singapore under the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. The changes relate to the defences available to a network service provider against liability for infringement of copyright.

Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2004 (A57/2004)

The Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2004 (A57/2004) was passed in Parliament on 16 November 2004.

The object of the Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act 2004 is to improve cash-flow by expediting payment in the building and construction industry. The Act provides that any person who has carried out construction work or supplied goods or services under a construction contract or supply contract has a statutory entitlement to payment. The Act also establishes a procedure by which the person may claim such payment, known as adjudication, and makes provision for remedies where the amount determined to be payable at adjudication is not paid.

Rules of Court (Amendment No 2) Rules 2004

The Rules Committee has issued the Rules of Court (Amendment No 2) Rules 2004 (‘Amendment Rules’) to make certain changes to the Rules of Court (r 5, 2004 ed) (‘Principal Rules’) with effect from 1 December 2004. Some of the key changes are as follows:

Amendment of Order 8 Rule 2

Applicable to originating motions and interlocutory motions filed on or after 1 December 2004, O 8 r 2 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting paragraph (2) and substituting the following paragraph:

(2) Unless the Court gives leave to the contrary:

(a) there must be at least seven clear days between the service of notice of an originating motion and the day named in the notice for hearing the motion; and

(b)  a notice of any other motion must be served within three days of its date of issue and there must be at least seven clear days between the service of notice of motion and the day named in the notice for hearing the motion.

Amendment of Order 12 Rule 7

Applicable to proceedings commenced on or after 1 December 2004, O 12 r 7 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting paragraphs (2) and (3) and substituting the following paragraphs:

(2) A defendant who wishes to contend that the Court should not assume jurisdiction over the action on the ground that Singapore is not the proper forum for the dispute shall enter an appearance and, within the time limited for filing a defence, apply to Court for an order staying the proceedings.

(3) An application under paragraph (1) or (2) must be made by summons supported by an affidavit verifying the facts on which the application is based and a copy of the affidavit must be served with the summons.

Amendment of Order 14

The time limit for summary judgment applications has been extended from 14 days after the close of pleadings to 28 days after the close of pleadings. This amendment applies to proceedings commenced on or after 1 December 2004.

Amendment of Order 17 Rule 4

Applicable to originating summonses and interpleader summonses filed on or after 1 December 2004, interpleader summonses will no longer have to be served personally unless ordered by the Court. Originating Summons still have to be personally served.

Amendment of Order 34 Rule 3A

For actions begun by writ in the High Court where the trial commences on or after 8 December 2004, the opening statements of all parties (as may be prescribed in any practice directions for the time being issued by the Registrar) have to be filed not less than five days before the trial of the action, along with the originals of the affidavit of the evidence-in-chief of all witnesses and a bundle of all documents that will be relied on or referred to in the course of the trial.

Amendment of Order 41 Rule 12

Order 41 of the principal Rules is amended by deleting r 12 and substituting the following Rule:

Affidavit taken outside Singapore admissible without proof of seal, etc. (O 41, r 12)

12 A document purporting to have affixed or impressed thereon or subscribed thereto the seal or signature of a court, judge, notary public or person having authority to administer oaths in any country in testimony of an affidavit being taken before it or him shall be admitted in evidence without proof of the seal or signature being the seal or signature of that court, judge, notary public or person.

Amendment of Order 45

A new O 45 r 11A is to be inserted after O 45 r 11 of the principal Rules:

Matters occurring after judgment: Enforcement Conference (O 45 r 11A)

11A Notwithstanding anything in these Rules, the Court may, at any time after the commencement of any execution proceedings, of its own motion or upon written request by any party, direct any party to those proceedings to appear before it, in order that the Court may make such order or give such direction as it thinks fit, for the just, expeditious and economical disposal of such proceedings including striking out of any writ of execution.’

Amendment of Order 46

Order 46 Rule 6(2) of the principal Rules currently provides that where a writ has not been wholly executed, the Court may order the extension of the validity of the writ from time to time for a period of 12 months at any time, beginning with the day on which the order is made. A new O 46 r (2A) is introduced to elaborate on the meaning of ‘wholly executed‘.

This amendment applies to writs of execution issued on or after 1 December 2004.

Amendment of Order 53

Previously, O 53 r 6 provided that leave shall not be granted to apply for certiorari to remove any judgment, order, conviction or other proceeding for the purpose of quashing the same, unless the leave application is made within six months after the date of the proceeding. This time limit has been shortened from six months to three months. This amendment applies to applications for leave to apply for an order of certiorari in respect of any judgment, order or conviction made on or after 1 December 2004 or in respect of any other proceedings commenced on or after that date.

Elizabeth Wong

Allen & Gledhill