Cap. 289 ст. 5Court deposits.

(1) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Ordinance all moneys lodged in court under article 3, shall remain payable to the persons who, but for such repeal, would have been entitled thereto or to any part thereof; but all payments thereof shall be governed exclusively by the provisions of this Act and shall be due subject to the provisions of this Act.

(2) With respect to any moneys lodged as aforesaid, the following provisions of this subarticle shall, notwithstanding any other law, have effect:

(a) all sums shall be paid or otherwise dealt with by the Registrar of Courts only in accordance with directions given by the Minister and signified by means of a note filed in the registry of the superior courts by or on behalf of the Attorney General;

(b) in giving any direction under paragraph (a) of this subarticle the Minister shall:

(i) in all cases, take into account the rights of any person who appears to him to have an interest in any part of the deposit as if the Ordinance had not been repealed;

(ii) with respect to any claim relating to works which are not completed on the date of the filing of the relative schedule of deposit, exercise such functions and enforce such requirements as could have been exercised or enforced by the Commission if the Ordinance had still been in force and with respect to any claim, ensure that no payment is made which could not have lawfully been made by the Commission if the Ordinance had still been in force; and

(iii) where any sum would, but for the repeal of the

(3) On the expiration of the period applicable to the case as provided in subarticle (4), any balances remaining unpaid, or otherwise disposed of, out of any sums lodged under this article, shall be forfeited in favour of the Government and shall be paid by the Registrar of Courts into the Consolidated Fund in accordance with directives given by the Minister by means of a note filed in the registry of the superior courts by and on behalf of the Attorney General.

(4) The periods referred to in subarticle (3) are:

(a) where payment is due for works completed before the appointed day, two years after that day;

(b) where payment is due for works not completed or not undertaken before the appointed day -

(i) six months after the appointed day, if the works are not undertaken and continued in earnest or if already undertaken they are not continued in earnest within that period;

(ii) two years from the appointed day, if the works are undertaken and continued in earnest or so continued as aforesaid: Provided that if, having been undertaken and continued or continued as aforesaid, the works are discontinued or not continued with due diligence, the period referred to in subarticle (3) shall be the period ending on the day certified by the Minister under his hand to be the day on which the works were discontinued or not continued with due diligence.

(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing provisions of this article -

(a) if on the expiration of two years after the appointed day payment would, but for the provisions of sub-article (3)(b)(ii), have been due, and the Minister is satisfied that the works in respect of which such payment would have been so due were completed before the expiration of the period aforesaid, he may, if he deems it equitable so to act, direct the payment to be made as if the period had not expired;

(b) where the Minister is satisfied that any amount deposited under article 3 is not sufficient to meet the claim in respect of which such deposit is made, he may direct the registrar to pay out of any balance remaining unpaid or otherwise disposed of under this article such sum or sums as he may deem necessary to meet the claim aforesaid.