No. 213. 195. The office of the Registrar-General shall be an office for 27 VICTORIA, the registration of all deeds conveyances and other instruments in writing conveying or affecting lands tenements or hereditaments in office of RegisVictoria; and shall be open for such purpose at the usual hours for trar-General to conducting the ordinary business of the said office. be the office of registration. To be open at the Officer shall endorse on the number and the livery into the 196. Whenever any such memorial is delivered into the said usual hours. office as aforesaid, the proper officer or clerk shall immediately immediately endorse on the back thereof the number thereof and the certain day back of such hour and time when the same was received and the name and place memorial the of abode of the person verifying the same; and the day hour and time of its detime so endorsed shall be held deemed and taken to be the day hour office with other and time of the registration of every such deed conveyance or instru- particulars. ment in writing whereof such memorial shall be made as aforesaid: and every such memorial so delivered in shall be numbered successively according to the order of time in which the same is delivered, and shall immediately be entered according to such number and order of time in some particular book which shall be provided and kept for that purpose in the said office; and every such book shall be open at all convenient times to the inspection of all such persons as may be desirous of searching the same. forfeit £5 for entry. liable in damages 197. Whenever any officer or clerk in the said office neglects Clerk or officer to or omits to number or enter in manner and form herein directed any neglect omission such memorial so delivered into the said office as aforesaid or makes or erroneous an erroneous entry thereof, he shall for every such neglect omission or erroneous entry forfeit and pay the sum of five pounds to Her Majesty, and shall be further liable in damages to the party injured and shall be by such neglect omission or erroneous entry according to the extent to the party of the injury thereby sustained. And whenever any such officer clerk injured. or other person wilfully embezzles razes alter forges or counterfeits To embezzle any such memorial or endorsement made thereon as aforesaid with or counterfeit intent to injure or defraud any other person or persons, such officer endorsement how clerk or other person shall be deemed guilty of felony; and if duly conviction. convicted thereof shall incur and suffer such and the like pains and penalties in the law as persons convicted of forging or counterfeiting any deed or will are subject to by any Act or Acts. erase alter forge such memorial or punishable on deeds convey made. 198. The registration of all deeds conveyances and other instru- Registration of ments in writing of or relating to any lands tenements or heredita- ances and instruments in Victoria shall be made in the following manner (that is to ments how to be say):-A memorial shall be written on parchment or paper, setting A memorial with forth the date of the deed conveyance or other instrument intended certain particuto be registered and the nature thereof, the names of all the parties written. and all the witnesses thereto," the lands tenements or hereditaments registration, priority over a previous purchaser whose deed was not registered.-Bullen v. a' Beckett, 1 Moo. P.C. (N.S.), 223. Where A. sold and conveyed land to B., and, subsequently, A. became insolvent, and his official assignee sold and conveyed the same land to C., the conveyance to C. was inoperative, though registered prior to the conveyance to B.-Andrews v. Taylor, 6 W. W. & a'B. (L.), 223; N.C., 22. Contra, on the authority of Warburton v. Loveland (2 Dow & Clarke, 480), if an owner of lands, seised in fee, conveys by an unregistered instru lars to be Memorial to be verified on oath. 27 VICTORIA, intended to be affected thereby, the pecuniary or other considerations No. 213. paid in the form or to the effect mentioned in the Fourth Schedule Fourth Schedule. to this Act or with such alterations therein as the nature and circumstances of any particular case may require; and the said memorial shall be signed by some or one of the parties to the original deed conveyance or instrument, and shall be delivered into the office of the Registrar-General and verified upon the oath of some competent person that such memorial contains a just and true account of the several particulars therein set forth and such oath shall be made before one of the judges of the Supreme Court or the RegistrarGeneral or before any commissioner appointed by the Supreme Court or a judge thereof in any part of Victoria for that purpose (such commissioner not being a party to the instrument, nor having been employed to prepare the same). Officer or clerk appointed shall 199. Upon the delivery and verification of any such memorial give a receipt for as aforesaid, the Registrar-General shall give a receipt for the same, in which shall be specified the certain day hour and time on which the same was delivered into the said office and the number of such memorial according as the same shall be numbered in the said office. the same specihour and time of fying the day its delivery. Receipt of me morial and date be endorsed on the instrument to 200. In every case where such memorial relates to any instruof such receipt to ment not being a will the said receipt shall be endorsed on such instrument, and the Registrar-General shall then attach his signature thereto; and every such receipt so endorsed and signed shall without further proof of such signature be taken and allowed as evidence of the registration of such instrument and of the day hour and time when such registration was made. which it relates. Wills under envelope and seal may be deposited Court until the death of the testator. 201. Any person residing in Victoria may deposit in the office of the Registrar-General his or her last will and testament under an in the Supreme envelope or cover sealed with the seal of such person; and the said envelope or cover shall be endorsed with such person's name, and unless previously required to be given up by such person shall remain in the said office in the custody of the Registrar-General until the decease of such person. And upon the death of such person the Registrar-General shall examine the same and deliver it to the executor first named therein, or (in case of doubt) to such person or persons as the Supreme Court or any judge thereof shall upon summary petition order and direct. Deeds &c. may be deposited in after covenants for their produc 202. Any person who now has or shall hereafter have the lawful court and there- custody of any deeds or documents relating to the title of any real or personal estate may deposit such deeds or documents with the tion inoperative. Registrar-General; and from and after such deposit such deeds or documents shall be retained by such registrar. And no action or suit at law or in equity shall be brought or maintained upon any covenant or agreement for the production of the deeds or documents so deposited, or upon any agreement to give or enter into a covenant for the production thereof; and if any such action or suit shall verify it, is not properly attested.-Dalton v. Plevins, 1 W. & W. (Eq.), 177. A memorial of registration, which simply gave the name of the County Court registrar as the party conveying, without stating his office or the right in which he conveyed, was considered a sufficient compliance with the "Registration Act," 6 Geo. IV. No. 22 s. 4.—White v. Bannister, A.R., 22 Sept. 1858. See In re "The Transfer of Land Statute,” ex parte Ross, 2 A.J.R., 19. be commenced, it shall be a sufficient answer thereto that such deeds 27 VICTORIA, or documents have been deposited under this enactment. And, No. 213. subject to such regulations as may be imposed and to the payment of such sums as may be made payable in that behalf by the Governor in Council, any person may inspect and make copies of and extracts from such deposited deeds and documents. rules and orders the registration under this Act 203. The Governor in Council may from time to time make The Governor in and alter rules and orders for facilitating the registration of deeds Council to make conveyances and other instruments under this Part of this Act and for facilitating the means of reference thereto as may be necessary; and may cause, of instruments as soon as conveniently may be, indices to be made to all deeds con- and the means of veyances and other instruments whereof memorials are from time to reference thereto. time registered in the said office whereby any houses lands or hereditaments in Victoria may be conveyed or affected in any manner howsoever. ment to be pro taken if any marksman there 204. The original instrument to which any such memorial Original instrurelates shall be produced to the judge or registrar or other person duced. before whom the same shall be verified as aforesaid; and if such course to be instrument appear to have been executed by any party unable to write, then such judge registrar or other person shall refuse to to. complete such memorial by certifying such inability unless the execution by such party be attested by some justice of the peace or barrister or attorney or notary public; and every such attestation shall contain a certificate that the contents of such instrument were previously explained to the party so unable to write, and that the nature and effect thereof were to the best of the belief of such justice or barrister or attorney or notary public understood by such party at the time of such execution. &c. 205. There shall be paid in respect of the several matters men- Fees to be paid tioned in this Part of this Act, and in the Fifth Schedule to this on registration Act, and also for and upon the enrolment of every grant from the Fifth Schedule. Crown hereafter made and issued, the sums or fees respectively set forth in such schedule; and such respective sums or fees shall be demanded and taken by the Registrar-General upon the receipt by him of any such memorial or grant from the Crown for the purpose of registration or enrolment as the case may be. Provided always that the sums or fees hereby made payable on the enrolment of any grant from the Crown shall not be paid to the Registrar-General; but to the Treasurer or to such other officer as may be appointed by His Excellency the Governor to deliver such grant, upon the delivery of the same to the grantee or to his representatives or assigns. sioner. 206. In addition to the fees made payable by the said schedule Fees to commisevery commissioner for the purposes of this Part of this Act may demand and have for his own use for the taking of every such verification to a memorial as aforesaid the sum of two shillings and sixpence. (a) A certificate of a magistrate is made necessary for the registration of a deed executed by a marksman. The registration of a deed does not cure either its legal or equitable defects, there fore the registration of a conveyance procured by fraud confers no priority.-Kerley v. Moule, A.R., 15 March 1861. 27 VICTORIA, No. 213. When two instruments are used for perfecting the same conveyance. False oaths made punishable. Term "instrument." Deposit of examined copy of any instrument. Proviso as to time of deposit &c. Facilitating proamined copy in 207. Where more than one instrument is used for perfecting the same conveyance or security relating to the same lands or hereditaments, one memorial only shall be necessary; and in any such memorial it shall be sufficient if the lands or hereditaments be particularised once only. 208. When any person at any time wilfully forswears himself or states anything contrary to the truth in any oath taken under the authority of this Part of this Act, he shall be deemed guilty of perjury; and if he be lawfully convicted thereof, he shall suffer the punishment provided by law for that crime. 209. The term "instrument" herein used shall for the several purposes of this Part of this Act be construed to include not only conveyances and other deeds, but also wills and all writings whatsoever whereby real estate shall be affected or shall be expressed or intended so to be. 210. Where in addition to a memorial of the instrument intended to be registered an examined copy of such instrument at full length is deposited in the office of the Registrar-General, if such examined copy be certified by the oath of two credible persons taken before a judge or any commissioner under this Part of this Act or before the Registrar-General to be a true copy of the original to which the same relates and by the oath in like manner of the attesting witness or witnesses to such original instrument that it was duly executed by the several parties thereto or by such of them as shall appear to have executed the same, such original instrument and also (in all cases where secondary evidence thereof would be receivable) every such examined copy shall be received and given in evidence in any suit or proceeding whatsoever, without proof of its execution by the parties or any of them whose execution shall have been so attested and certified, and as if such execution by the said parties had been proved in the ordinary manner. 211. Every such examined copy shall be referred to in the memorial as accompanying or intended to accompany the same, and shall be deposited as aforesaid within two months or if executed out of Victoria within twelve months after the date of the instrument to which it relates; and the day hour and time of such deposit shall immediately after receipt of every such examined copy be endorsed thereon, and also on the original instrument of which it purports to be a copy. And such endorsements respectively if signed by the Registrar-General shall on proof of such signature be received as conclusive evidence of the fact or facts therein stated: and every such examined copy, if numbered according to the order of its receipt and also marked with the number of the memorial to which it relates, shall thenceforth be carefully retained by such RegistrarGeneral and preserved for future reference; and any such copy shall not be received with any interlineation or erasure therein, unless the same shall be noticed in the margin opposite thereto by the signatures of the persons certifying on oath to such copy. 212. Where the production of any such examined copy as duction of ex- aforesaid or of any memorial shall be required for the purposes of evidence. evidence under this Part of this Act, the same respectively shall be No. 213. produced by the Registrar-General or by leave of the Supreme Court 27 VICTORIA, or a judge thereof by any other person, upon security given to the satisfaction of such court or judge for the safe keeping thereof and for the return of the same uninjured within a reasonable time to be limited for that purpose. feoftment. the last 213. Where any such examined copy certified as aforesaid of Effect of regisany deed of feoffment is duly deposited in the office of the Regis-mentioned cases trar-General in manner aforesaid, the registration of the memorial as to deeds of referring to such copy shall operate as, and be for all purposes equivalent to, livery of seisin as to the lands and hereditaments comprised in or expressed or intended to be conveyed by such deed of feoffment, the same in all respects as if there had been livery of seisin actually made and given of the same lands and hereditaments in the most valid and effectual form and manner. 214. [Repealed and new provision substituted by 31 Vict. No. 318 s. 2, "Real Property (Amendment 1867)," post, p. 2366.] Council may ap ral. 215. The Governor in Council may from time to time appoint Governor in and remove a Deputy Registrar-General; and all acts and things point a Deputy by this or any other Act required or authorised to be done by the Registrar-GeneRegistrar-General may be done by any such Deputy RegistrarGeneral; and every act and thing done by any such Deputy Registrar-General shall be as valid and effectual as if the same had been done by the Registrar-General.(«) PART XVIII.-APPORTIONMENT OF RENTS AND PERIODICAL PAYMENTS. on leases determining on the death of the person making them strictly tenant 9 pur autre vie to within the provi 216. Rents reserved and made payable on any demise or lease Rents reserved of lands tenements or hereditaments which have been or shall be made and which leases or demises determined or shall determine on the death of the person making the same (although such person was (though not not strictly tenant for life thereof) or on the death of the life or for life) or on the lives for which such person was entitled to such hereditaments shall, death of tenant so far as respects the rents reserved by such leases and the recovery be considered as of a proportion thereof by the person granting the same his or her sions of 11 Geo. executors or administrators (as the case may be), be considered as within the provisions of the Act passed in the eleventh year of the c. 22 s. 1. reign of His Majesty King George the Second intituled "An Act "for the more effectual Securing the Payment of Rents and preventing "Frauds by Tenants." II. c. 19. ties and other periods to be ap 217. From and after the passing of this Act, all rent-service All rents annuireserved on any lease by a tenant in fee or for any life interest or by payments coming any lease granted under any power (and which leases shall have due at fixed been granted after the passing of this Act), and all rents-charge portioned. and other rents annuities pensions dividends compositions, and all Ib. s. 2. other payments of every description in Victoria made payable or coming due at fixed periods under any instrument that shall be executed after the passing of this Act or (being a will or testamentary instrument) that shall come into operation after the passing (a) A certificate of registration of a company, according to 35 Vict. No. 409 s. 10, may be signed by the Deputy Registrar.-Reg. v. Walter, 5 A.J.R., 25. |