MERCANTILE LAW AMENDMENT ORDINANCE, 1864

MERCANTILE LAW AMENDMENT ORDINANCE, 1864

No. 1 of 1864.

An Ordinance to amend the laws of trade and commerce.
[13th Sept., 1864.]

1. This Ordinance may be cited as the Mercantile Law
Amendment Ordinance, 1864.

2, No special promise made by any peson to answer for
the debt, default, or miscarriage of another peson, being in
writing and signed by the party charged theewith or some
other person by him therunto lawfully authorised, shall be
deemed invalid to support an action, suit, or other proceed-
ing to charge the person by whom such promise has been
made, by reason only that the consideration for such promise
does not appeaaaar in writing or by necessary inference from a
writen document.

3. Every person who, being surety for the debt or duty of
another or being laibale with another for any debt or duty,
pays such debt or performs such duty shall be entitled to
have assigned to hm, or to a trustee for him, every judg-
ment, specialty, or other security which is held by the
creditor in respect of such debt or duty, whether such
judgment, specialty or other security is or is not deemed
at law to have been satisfied by the payment of the debt
or performance of the duty, and such person shall be
entitled to stand in the place of the creditor, and to use
all the remedies, and if need be and upon a propert indemnity,
to use the name, of creditior in any action or other pro-


* As amended by Ref. Ord., 1923.


ceeding, at law or in equity in order to obtain from the
principal debtor or any co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debtor,
as the case may be, indemnification for the advances made
and loss sustained by the peson who has so paid such debt
or performed such duty, and such payment or performance
so made by such surety shall not be pleadable in bar of any
such action or other proceeding by him: Provided always
that no co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debotr shall be entitled
to recover from any other co-surety, co-contractor, or co-debtor,
by the means aforesaid, more than the just proportion to
which, as between those parties themselves, such last-
mentioned peson is justly liable.

4. All actions of account or for not accounting, and suits
for such accounts as concern the trade of merchandise,
between merchant and merchant, their factors or servants,
shall be commenced and sued within six years after the cause
of such actions or suits; and no claim in s=respect of a matter
which arose more than six years before the commencement
of any such action or suit shall be enforceable by action or
suit by reason only of some other matter of claim comprised
in the same accojnt having arisen within six years next
before th commencement of such action or suit.

5. No person or persons who is or are entitled to any
action or suit with respect to which the period of limitation
within which the same shall be brought is fixed by section 3
of the Act 21 James 1, chapter 16 (the Limitation Act, 1623),
or by section 17 of the Act 4 & 5 Anne, chapter 3, or by
section 5 of the Act 53 George 3, chapter 127, or by sections
40, 41 and 42 of the Act 3 & 4 William 4, chapter 27 (the
Real Property Limitation Act, 1833), or by section 3 of the
Act 3 & 4 William 4, chapter 42, or by section 20 of the Act
16 & 17 Victoria, chapter 113, shall be entitled to any time
within which to commence and sue such action or suit beyond
the period so fixed for the same by the enactments aforesaid,
by reason only of such person or some one or more of such
persons being, at the time of such cause of action or suit
accrued, absent from the Colony, or, in the cases in which,
by virtue of any of the aforesaid enactments, imprisonment
is now a disability, by reason of such person or some one or


* 4 and 5 Ann,e c. 3 is equivalent to the 4 and 5 Anne, c. 16 of Ruffhead's
Edition.




more of such persons being imprisoned at the time of such
cause of action or suit accrued.

6. Where such cause of action or suit with respect to
which the period of limitation is fixed by the enactments
aforesaid or any of them lies against two or more joint
debtors, the person who is entitled to the same shall not be
entitled to any time withinwhich to commence and sue any
such action or suit against any one or more of such joint
debtors who is or are not absent from the Colony at the time
such cause of action or suit accrued, by reason only that
some other one or more of such joint debotrs was or were at
the time such cause of action accrued so absent; and such
person so entitled as aforesaid shall not be barred from com-
mencing and suing any action or suit against the joint debtor
or joint debtors who was or were so absent at the time the
cause of action or suit accrued after his or their return to
the Colony, by reason only that judgment was already
recovered against any one or more of such joint debtors who
was not or were not absent at the time aforesaid.

7. In reference to the provisions of sections 1 and 8 of the
Act 9 George 4, chapter 14, (the Statute of Frauds Amend-
ment Act, 1828), and section 24 of the said Act 16 & 17
Victoria, chapter 113, an acknowledgment or promise made
or contained by or in a writing signed by an agent of the
party chargeable thereby, duly authorised to make such
acknowledgement or promise, shall have the same effect as if
such writing had been signed by such party himself.

8. In reference to the provisions of the said section 3 of the
Act 21 James 1, chapter 16, the said section 3 of the Act 3 & 4
William 4, chapter 42, and the said section 20 of the Act
16 & 17 Victoria, chapter 113, when there are two or more co-
contractors or co-debtors, whether bound or liable jointly only
or jointly and severally, or executors or administrators of
any contractor, no such co-contractor or co-debtor, or executor
or administrator, shall lose the benefit of the said enactments
or any of them, so as to be chargeable in respect or by reason
only of payment of any principal, interest, or other money
by any other of such co-contractors or co-debtors or executors
or addministrators.

[s. 9, rep. No. 50 of 1911.]

[Originally No. 13 of 1864. Law Rev. Ord., 1924.] Short title. Consideration for guarantee need not appear by writing. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 3. Right of surety who discharges liability to assignment of all securities held by creditor. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 5. Limitation of actions for merchants' accounts. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97 s. 9. Certain periods of limitation of actions and suits not to be extended by absence from the Colony or imprisonment of person entitled. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 10. Period of limitation to run as to joint debtors in the Colony, though some absent. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 11. Extension of certain enactments to acknowledgment by agent. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 13. Saving of benefit of statute to contractor or debtor whose co-contractor or co-debtor makes payments. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 14.

[Originally No. 13 of 1864. Law Rev. Ord., 1924.] Short title. Consideration for guarantee need not appear by writing. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 3. Right of surety who discharges liability to assignment of all securities held by creditor. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 5. Limitation of actions for merchants' accounts. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97 s. 9. Certain periods of limitation of actions and suits not to be extended by absence from the Colony or imprisonment of person entitled. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 10. Period of limitation to run as to joint debtors in the Colony, though some absent. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 11. Extension of certain enactments to acknowledgment by agent. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 13. Saving of benefit of statute to contractor or debtor whose co-contractor or co-debtor makes payments. 19 & 20 Vict.c. 97, s. 14.

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