Report. A new Act has been passed in the present Session of Parliament relating to Building Societies: the Building Societies, Act 1875 (38 & 39 Vict. c. 9). This repeals Section 8 of the Act of 1834, as from the date of its commencement, but not so as to affect certificates of incorporation given, or matters done or suffered in pursuance of such section before the date of the new Act (Section 1), and simply authorises societies certified under the 6 & 7 Will. 4, c. 32, to become incorporated under the Act of 1874. Such societies will thereupon be deemed societies under that Act, and their rules, so far as they are not contrary to any of its express provisions, will continue in force until altered or rescinded, as mentioned in the Act. From the experience of the Registrar's office hitherto, it is to be feared that the attempt to rectify what was no doubt a blunder introduced at the last moment into the Act of 1874, has only introduced new complexities into the law as respects this important class of bodies. 66 66 66 66 66 For example, Section 18 of the Act of 1874 provides that, any society under this Act, certified previously to the passing of this Act, may alter or rescind any rule, or make "any additional rule, by the vote of three-fourths of the "nembers present at a special meeting called for the purpose, of which meeting notice, specifying the proposed "alteration, rescission, or addition shall be given to the members in the manner provided by the rules of the soIciety, or, in the absence of such rules, by letters sent "through the post seven days previous to such meeting." Section 12 provides that, "a certificate of incorporation shall "not be granted to an existing society, except upon appli"cation to the Registrar, made by authority of a general "meeting of the society specially called for the purpose.' Section 22 provides that, "a society under this Act may "change its name by resolution of three-fourths of the mem"bers present at a meeting called for the purpose.' Societies on becoming incorporated usually require to make some alteration in their rules, and not unfrequently desire to make some change in their name, such as the omission of the word "Benefit," or of any words which make the name inconveniently long for being engraved on the seal. Previously to the passing of the Act of 1875 these could be resolved upon at meetings held at the same time as that which resolved upon the application for incorporation, as every society certified under the Act of 1836 was "a society "under the Act of 1874" from the time of the commence ment ment of the Act of 1874. Since the passing of the Act of 1875, however, a society cannot legally take any steps under Sections 18 or 22 of the Act of 1874 till after the certificate of incorporation has been issued. 66 Again, the form of the certificate of incorporation, under the Act of 1874, requires that the last words in the registered name of the society should be Building Society," and Regulation No. 10 of the Secretary of State prescribed the manner in which that portion of the Act should be carried into effect. In the numerous cases in which the registered name of the society is not in accordance with Regulation 10, it was practicable, before the passing of the Act of 1875, for the society to change its name in the manner directed by Section 22 of the Act of 1874, but that is not now practicable. Again, it not being possible to restore the state of things which would have existed if the error in Section 8 had never been made, the Act of 1875 might be found to have placed the liability of members in the following position in an incorporated society : Unlimited up to 2nd November 1874; Limited to the amount actually paid and in arrear from the Unlimited after 22nd April 1875; and it places in a like anomalous position all matters in which the Act of 1874 varied the law under the Act of 1836. Report. Report. INDUSTRIAL AND PROVIDENT (OR CO-OPERATIVE) SOCIETIES The following is an abstract of the returns made by these societies to the Registrar (or Barrister) for the year ending 31st December 1874. Detailed returns have been presented to Parliament (Parly. Papers 325 and 361, Sess. 1875) : INDUSTRIAL AND PROVIDENT SOCIETIES. Amount actually advanced and paid by Depositors and Shareholders in 1874 - 199,365 407.744 Industrial and Provident Societies, the Registrar may observe, sometimes, like Trade Unions, seek to introduce into their rules provisions applicable properly to Friendly Societies, such as contributions for payments on death, which might bring them within the operation of the Life Assurance Companies Acts. Such provisions not being illegal in themselves, the Registrar cannot refuse to register them; but he has thought it right to caution societies as to their effect. It may be mentioned that a model form of rules for societies under the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts has been drawn up by E. V. Neale, Esq., which, although not altogether meeting with the Registrar's approval, is accepted by the Office as sufficient. The number of rules of new Loan Societies certified during the year was 66; alterations of rules, 44. Report. LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. One society, the "Brockley and New Cross Association for Scientific and Literary Purposes," received a certificate exempting it from rates, pursuant to 6 & 7 Vict. c. 36. Several applications for such certificate were refused, on the ground that the rules of the societies did not comply with the requirements of that Act. SAVINGS BANKS, POST OFFICE SAVINGS BANKS, AND The Registrar has thought it might be interesting, returning to the practice of a former Registrar, the late Mr. Tidd Pratt, to give some particulars relating to Savings Banks, Post Office Savings Banks,* and Government Annuities and Insurances, in which the industrious classes, to whom the Registrar desires to make his Report useful, are much interested : 1.-POST The Registrar is informed by Mr. Binyon that Post Office Savings Banks are being established in Japan, and that in April 1875, 18 had already been opened at Jeddo. 1.-POST OFFICE SAVINGS BANKS. ACCOUNT of all DEPOSITS Received and Paid from 1st January to 31st December 1874. The total number of Post Office Savings Banks is upwards of 5,000; the number of depositors nearly 1,670,000. The business transacted by these Banks, in receipts and payments, therefore, exceeded 16 million pounds. |