Merchant Shipping (Amendment No. 2) Bill

A Singapore ship or a share therein may be made a security for a loan or other valuable consideration, and the instrument creating the security (in this Part referred to as “a mortgage”) shall be in the prescribed form or as near thereto as circumstances permit, and on production of such instrument the Registrar shall record it in the register book.(2) Mortgages shall be recorded by the Registrar in the order in time in which they are produced to him for that purpose, and the Registrar shall endorse and sign a memorandum on each mortgage stating the date and time of that record.(3) A mortgage executed outside Singapore and produced before a diplomatic or consular officer of Singapore duly authorised to receive the same may be recorded by the Registrar on the advice of such diplomatic or consular officer.Obligation of mortgagor before execution and registration of mortgage524A.—

Before executing any mortgage to be registered under this Ordinance, the mortgagor shall disclose in writing to the mortgagee the existence of any maritime lien, prior mortgage, or other liability in respect of the ship to be mortgaged, which is known to the mortgagor.(2) Where the mortgagor has failed to comply with this section the mortgage debt shall at the election of the mortgagee become immediately due and payable, notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the mortgage.Entry of discharge of mortgage524B. Where a registered mortgage is discharged, the Registrar shall, on production of the mortgage, with a receipt for the mortgage money endorsed thereon, duly signed and attested, make an entry in the register book to the effect that the mortgage has been discharged, and on that entry being made the estate, if any, which passed to the mortgagee shall vest in the person in whom (having regard to any intervening acts and circumstances) it would have vested, if the mortgage had not been made.Priority of mortgages524C. If there are more mortgages than one registered in respect of the same ship or share, the mortgagees shall, notwithstanding any express, implied or constructive notice, be entitled in priority one over the other, according to the date and time of the record of each mortgage in the register book and not according to the date of each mortgage itself.Mortgagee not deemed to be owner524D. Except as may be necessary for making a mortgaged ship or share available as a security for the mortgage debt, the mortgagee shall not, by reason of the mortgage, be deemed to be the owner of the ship or share, nor shall the mortgagor be deemed to have ceased to be the owner thereof.Powers of mortgagee524E.—

Every registered mortgagee shall have power absolutely to dispose of the ship or share in respect of which he is registered, and to give effectual receipts for the purchase money; but where there are more persons than one registered as mortgagees of the same ship or share, a subsequent mortgagee shall not, except under the order of the High Court, sell the ship or share without the concurrence of every prior mortgagee.(2) Every registered mortgagee shall be entitled to enforce his mortgage by an action in rem in admiralty whenever any sum secured by the mortgage is unpaid when due or otherwise in accordance with the terms of any deed or instrument collateral to the mortgage.Mortgagee not affected by bankruptcy524F. A registered mortgage of a ship or share shall not be affected by any act of bankruptcy committed by the mortgagor after the date of the record of the mortgage, notwithstanding that the mortgagor at the commencement of his bankruptcy had the ship or share in his possession, order or disposition, or was the reputed owner thereof, and the mortgage shall be preferred to any right, claim or interest therein of the other creditors of the bankrupt or any trustee or assignee on their behalf.Transfer of mortgages524G.—

A registered mortgage of a ship or share may be transferred to any person and the instrument effecting the transfer shall be in the prescribed form or as near thereto as circumstances permit, and on production of such instrument, the Registrar shall record the transfer by entering in the register book the name of the transferee as mortgagee of the ship or share and shall endorse and sign on the instrument of transfer a memorandum that the transfer has been recorded by him stating the date and time of that record.(2) The person to whom any registered mortgage has been transferred shall enjoy the same right of preference as was enjoyed by the transferor.Transmission of interest in mortgage in certain circumstances524H.—

Where the interest of a mortgagee in a Singapore ship or any share therein is transmitted on the death or bankruptcy of the mortgagee, or by any lawful means other than by a transfer under this Ordinance, the transmission shall be authenticated by a declaration of the person to whom the interest is transmitted.(2) A declaration made under this section shall contain a statement of the manner in which, and the person to whom, the property has been transmitted, and shall be accompanied by the like evidence as is by this Ordinance required in the case of a corresponding transmission of the ownership of a Singapore ship or share therein.(3) The Registrar, on receipt of the declaration and production of the evidence aforesaid, shall enter the name of the person entitled under the transmission in the register book as mortgagee of the ship or share.”.

No notice of any trust, express, implied or constructive, shall be entered in the register book or be receivable by the Registrar, and, subject to any rights and powers appearing by the register book to be vested in any other person, the registered owner of a ship or of a share therein shall have power absolutely to dispose, in the manner provided in this Part, of the ship or share, and to give effectual receipts for any money paid or advanced by way of consideration.(2) Subject to the provisions of this section and section 524E of this Ordinance, interests arising under contract or other equitable interests may be enforced by or against owners and mortgagees of ships in respect of their interest therein in the same manner as in respect of any other personal property.”.

by re-numbering the existing section as subsection (1); and

by adding thereto the following new subsection: —“(2) Subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to the provisions of this Ordinance or any regulations relating to the mortgage of Singapore ships.”.