53644-1917-Supplementary-Bills-read-a-first-time--Rating-Amendment-Public-Servants-Liabilities-Alien-Enemies-Winding-up-Amendment-Protection-of-Women-and-Girls-Amendments — Page 11

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- Clauses 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 are intended to prevent any immovable property sold in the liquidations from pass- ing under the control of persons who now are enemies or enemy subjects. A reference to the definition in clause 2 will show that "probibited control" is defined so as to include control after the conclusion of peace by persons who are now enemies or enemy subjects. Both that term and the term "corporation under enemy control” have been defined as widely as possible in order to include every possible form of control by or on behalf of persous who are now enemies or enemy subjects. Clause 13 prohibits liquidators from transferring property to prohibited control. Clause 14 provides for statutory declarations being made to enable liquidators to test the bonâ fides of intending purchasers. The forms of these declarations are given in clause 22. Clause 15 prohibits purchasers of immovable property from the liquidators from transferring such property to prohibited control without the permission of the Governor. It also provides that any person contra- vening the provisions of the section shall forfeit to the Crown the sum of $50,000. The reference to the permis sion of the Governor. is intended to meet difficulties which might otherwise arise hereafter on the transfer of immovable property sold in the liquidations, as no doubt a time will eventually arrive when it will be very difficult to ascer- tain whether a sale will or will not involve a transfer to prohibited control as defined in this bill. In such cases the prohibited control suspected may be merely technical and of no practical importance, and it would seem undesirable that vendors should be unable to sell except at a depreciated price and at the risk of committing a technical offence, and equally undesirable that purchasers acting on all good faith should have to take property with a technical flaw in the title. Probably in such cases after due enquiry the Governor's permission would be given to the transfer. Clause 16 provides for the forfeiture of immovable property sold in liquidations which comes under probibited control. Clause 17.gives the Governor power to require particulars for the purpose of enabling him to ascertain whether any such property is under prohibited control,

. Clause 18 deals with the question of trade marks belong- ing to alien enemies. Now that the liquidations are coming to an end and the control of the liquidators for all practical purposes will soon cease it has become necessary to make some other provision in order to retain Govern- ment control over these marks and to prevent their use by unauthorised persons. The method adopted is to vest the trade marks in the Custodian, together with the goodwill of the trades in which they were used,

It is also necessary to provide for the keeping of these marks on the register because when the liquidators have paid in all their surplus assets to the Custodian they will have no funds from which to pay renewal fees. This point is dealt with by providing that none of these marks shall be removed from tho register for non-payment of renewal fees except by order of the Governor, and it is also provided that any such marks which have been removed for non-payment of renewal fees shall be restored to the register.

Clause 19 provides that the validity of acts done by liquidators is not to be questioned on the ground that at the time when the act was done the person whose affairs are being wound up was not an alien enemy, or had died, or, in the case of a corporate body, had ceased to exist. A somewhat similar provision appears in section 9 of the Trading with the Enemy Amendment Act, 1916.

Clanse 20 provides that no legal proceeding of any kind shall be brought against any liquidator or public officer, except with the permission of the Governor, in respect of any act or omission connected with any winding up under the Alien Enemies (Winding up) Ordinances.

Clause 21 provides that the provisions of the Alien Enemies (Winding up) Ordinance shall continue for such period after the conclusion of the war as may seem proper to the Governor. The object of the clause is to provide an interval during which the whole position, both here and in other parts of the Empire and in enemy countries, may be considereil. It may also be that on the couclusion of the war various questions as to the liabilities of firms which are being wound up will still be unsettled.