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14 1947

AGRICULTURAL CREDIT ACT, 1947

Chapter III.

Unregistered land.

Priority of certain, charges in favour of the Corporation on unregistered land.

42. —(1) Where—

(a) (i) a person is in occupation of land which is for the time being subject to a periodic (Land Commission) sum, and

(ii) such person is certified by the Land Commission to be the person by whom such periodic (Land Commission) sum is payable at the date of such certificate, and

(iii) such person (either alone or in conjunction with other persons) within one month after the date of such certificate charges such land in favour of the Corporation with payment of a principal sum not exceeding four hundred pounds and any interest, and

(iv) the instrument effecting such charge is duly registered in the Registry of Deeds,

or

(b) (i) a person (in this paragraph referred to as the personal representative) is, in his capacity as a personal representative of a deceased person, in occupation of land which is for the time being subject to a periodic (Land Commission) sum, and

(ii) the Land Commission certify in respect of such land that a periodic (Land Commission) sum is at the date of such certificate payable by the personal representative, and

(iii) the personal representative (either alone or in conjunction with other persons) within one month after the date of such certificate charges such land in favour of the Corporation with payment of a principal sum not exceeding four hundred pounds and any interest, and

(iv) the instrument effecting such charge is duly registered in the Registry of Deeds,

then, subject to the provisions of this section, such charge (which shall be construed as extending, in addition to the said principal sum and interest, to the costs and expenses of all legal proceedings instituted by the Corporation for the purpose of realising the amount at any time owing to the Corporation on foot of the said principal sum and interest) shall as against the land so charged be in priority to and shall override all estates and interests in and all incumbrances and burdens on the said land which may be subsisting at the date of such instrument except the said periodic (Land Commission) sum, compounded arrears of rent within the meaning of the Land Purchase Acts, mortgages in favour of the Land Commission, any land purchase annuity which may subsequently be charged on the said land under the Land Purchase Acts, any annuity, rent charge or other periodic payment payable to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, any charge or mortgage in favour of the said Commissioners on foot of any moneys due or payable to them in respect of a local loan within the meaning of the Local Loans Fund Act, 1935 (No. 16 of 1935), and any of the charges mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b), (d), (e) and (g) of section 47 of the Act of 1891.

(2) Where at the date of an instrument effecting a charge on land which would, on such instrument being registered in the Registry of Deeds, be entitled, but for this subsection, to priority under this section, a caution under section 61 of the Act of 1891, as extended by section 43 of this Act, appears in the Land Registry in respect of such land, then, notwithstanding anything contained in subsection (1) of this section, the relative priorities of such charge and of the estate, interest, incumbrance, or other claim against such land of the person by whom such caution was lodged shall, unless such person agrees to the contrary, be determined as if subsection (1) of this section had not been enacted.

Lodgment of cautions by puisne claimants against unregistered land.

43. —(1) Any person claiming to be entitled to an estate or interest in or incumbrance on or claim against any unregistered land which is a puisne claim against such land or would become a puisne claim against such land if a priority charge were created on such land, may (whether the instrument, if any, under which such claim arises is or is not registered in the Registry of Deeds) lodge under section 61 of the Act of 1891 a caution against the registration against such land on or after the first registration thereof of any dealing with such land in favour of the Corporation to the prejudice of such claim.

(2) Where a caution is lodged under section 61 of the Act of 1891 as extended by subsection (1) of this section in respect of any land, subsection (2) of the said section 61 shall not apply to such caution but in lieu thereof such caution shall, on the first registration of such land, be entered on the folio relating to such land as a caution lodged under section 69 of the Act of 1891 and shall have effect accordingly.

Rights of puisne claimants against unregistered land subject to priority charges which are not permanent improvement charges.

44. —(1) A priority charge on unregistered land which is not a permanent improvement charge against such land shall, as between the mortgagor and puisne claimants against such land, be deemed to be charged on all and every (if any) estate and interest· in such land to which the mortgagor was at the date of the registration of such priority charge in the Registry of Deeds or becomes at any time thereafter beneficially entitled in indemnification of all puisne claims against such land by puisne claimants.

(2) All moneys paid to the Corporation by, or out of the share, estate, or interest of a puisne claimant (other than the mortgagor) against unregistered land on foot of a priority charge which is not a permanent improvement charge on such land shall be repaid to such puisne claimant by the mortgagor on demand with interest thereon at the rate of three per cent. per annum and until so repaid such moneys and the interest thereon shall be a debt due by the mortgagor to such puisne claimant and shall be deemed to be charged in favour of such puisne claimant on all and every (if any) estate and interest to which the mortgagor is beneficially entitled in such land or the proceeds of the sale thereof at the date of such payment to the Corporation.

Protection of minors and persons of unsound mind in respect of priority charges on unregistered land which are not permanent improvement charges.

45. —(1) Where unregistered land is subject to a priority charge which is not a permanent improvement charge and a puisne claimant against such land is, at the date of registration of such priority charge, under the age of twenty-one years or of unsound mind, such puisne claimant shall be entitled at any time after such registration (but, in case such puisne claimant is under the age of twenty-one years at the time of such registration, not after he attains the age of twenty-five years) to obtain from the Circuit Court an order that the mortgagor do, by giving security, lodgment of money in Court or such other means as shall be approved of by the Court, give to such puisne claimant an indemnity which in the opinion of the Court adequately protects his puisne claim against the said priority charge and that in default of the mortgagor giving such indemnity within three months after the date of such order the said land be sold by the Court and the proceeds of such sale be applied according to law and that in any event the costs of such puisne claimant in relation to such order, the application therefor and all proceedings thereunder when taxed as between solicitor and client be paid by the mortgagor.

(2) An indemnity given by a mortgagor in pursuance of an order under the foregoing subsection shall be enforceable, with the leave of the Circuit Court and in such manner as that Court shall direct, whenever the priority charge in respect of which such indemnity was given is enforced to the prejudice of the puisne claim for the protection of which such indemnity was given or in such other circumstances as in the opinion of the said Court render it just and equitable that such indemnity should be enforced.

(3) The rights and benefits conferred on any puisne claimant by this section shall be in addition and without prejudice to any other rights or benefits to which such puisne claimant may be entitled under this Act.

(4) No order under subsection (1) of this section shall be granted without notice to the mortgagor unless the Court shall think proper to dispense with such notice.

Lodgment of cautions by the Corporation.

46. —Whenever the Corporation claims to be an incumbrancer on unregistered land by virtue of an instrument registered in the Registry of Deeds, it shall be lawful for the Corporation, notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in section 61 of the Act of 1891, to lodge with the registering authority a caution under the said section, and where such caution is so registered it shall be lawful for the registering authority, on the first registration of such land, to register the incumbrance created by such instrument as a burden affecting such land with such priority (if any) as is given to such incumbrance by this Act or otherwise by law.