HC Deb 26 November 1914 vol 68 cc1470-2

  1. (1) The Custodian shall, except so far as the Board of Trade or the High Court or a judge thereof may otherwise direct, and subject to the provisions of the next succeeding Sub-section, hold any money paid to, and any property vested in him under this Act until the termination of the present war, and shall thereafter deal with the same in such manner as His Majesty may by Order in Council direct.
    2. 1471
  2. (2) The property held by the Custodian under this Act shall not be liable to be attached or otherwise taken in execution, but the Custodian may, if so authorised by an order of the High Court or a judge by whose order any property belonging to an enemy was vested in the Custodian under this Act, or of any Court in which judgment has been recovered against an enemy, pay out of the property paid to him in respect of that enemy any debts due by that enemy and specified in the order.
  3. (3) The receipt of the Custodian or any person duly authorised to sign receipts on his behalf for any sum paid to him under this Act shall be a good discharge to the person paying the same as against the person or body of persons in respect of whom the sum was paid to the Custodian.
  4. (4) The Custodian shall keep a register of all property held by him under this Act which register shall be open to public inspection at all reasonable times free of charge.

Amendments made: In Sub-section (2), after the word "enemy" ["in respect of the enemy"], insert the words "the whole or any part of."

At end of Sub-section (2), add the words: "Provided that before paying any such debt the Custodian shall take into consideration the sufficiency of the property paid to or vested in him in respect of the enemy in question, to satisfy that debt, and any other claims against that enemy of which notice verified by statutory declaration may have been served upon him."—[Sir J. Simon.]

Sir C. CORY

I beg to move, after the words last inserted, to add the words: "Notices or writs and other process shall be served on the Custodian, who shall forthwith give four weeks' notice thereof in the 'London Gazette,' and a copy of the 'London Gazette' shall be forwarded to the Foreign Office of the country to which the enemy owes allegiance, through any available diplomatic channel, and such notice shall be deemed to be good service on the enemy."

I wish to impress on the Attorney-General once more the great importance that traders attach to the power of serving a writ. I do not think the right hon. Gentleman heard my arguments last night.

Sir J. SIMON

I read every word.

Sir C. CORY

If a company is registered in compliance with the Act you can serve notice on it through the registered post if there is no one here to defend the case. Therefore if the company has not complied with that they are really in a better position than one that has, because it has been stated that it would not be fair to serve a notice through the Custodian because he could not get the company to defend his case. He is in exactly the same position as a man who had registered. Therefore the man who does not comply with the law has an advantage over the man who has. I cannot for the life of me see if it is fair in one case why it should not be fair in the other. If you go to Scotland there is the power there of arresting the assets, in which case the enemy has no more chance of coming to defend his case than if the writ is served on the Custodian. It is very easy to send a copy of the "Gazette" to the Foreign Office in Germany through the American Ambasador, and if the Foreign Office did not notify the debtor in Germany, that would be their look-out. It would give him every opportunity of sending back through the American Ambassador instructions to defend the case in the Courts here. In justice to the debtors of this country the Attorney-General might do something to meet their wishes.

Amendment not seconded.

Amendment made: At end of Clause, add the following new Sub-section: (5) In England and Ireland the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chancellor for Ireland may by rules, and in Scotland the Court of Session may by act of sederunt, make provision for the practice and procedure to be adopted for the purposes of this and the last preceding Section."—[Sir J. Simon.]