Singapore legislation
Clause 58
Clause 58
Power of committee to settle claims
(1)
The committee may, subject to this Part, allow and settle any proper claim for compensation from a fidelity fund at any time after the commission of the defalcation in respect of which the claim arose.
(2)
Subject to subsection (3) of this section, a person shall not commence proceedings under this Part against a stock exchange without leave of the committee unless —
the committee has disallowed his claim; and
the claimant has exhausted all relevant rights of action and other legal remedies for recovery of the money or other property in respect of which the defalcation was committed available against the sole trader or the partners in the member firm or the directors of the member company in relation to whom or to which the claim arose and all other persons liable in respect of the loss suffered by the claimant.
(3)
A person who has been refused leave by a committee may apply for leave to a judge of the Court in chambers who may make such order in the matter as he thinks fit.
(4)
The committee after disallowing (whether wholly or partly) any claim for compensation from a fidelity fund shall serve notice of such disallowance in the prescribed form on the claimant or his solicitor.
(5)
No proceedings against a stock exchange in respect of a claim which has been disallowed by the committee shall be commenced after the expiration of three months after service of notice of disallowance under subsection (4) of this section.
(6)
In any proceedings brought to establish a claim evidence of any admission or confession by or other evidence which would be admissible against the stock broker or other person by whom it is alleged a defalcation was committed shall be admissible to prove the commission of the defalcation notwithstanding that the stock broker or other person is not the defendant in or a party to those proceedings, and all defences which would have been available to that stock broker or person shall be available to the stock exchange.
(7)
The committee or, where proceedings are brought to establish a claim, the Court, if satisfied that the defalcation on which the claim is founded was actually committed, may allow the claim and act accordingly, notwithstanding that the person who committed the defalcation has not been convicted or prosecuted therefor or that the evidence on which the committee or Court (as the case may be) acts would not be sufficient to establish the guilt of that person upon a criminal trial in respect of the defalcation.