ACT No. I of 2011 AN ACT to amend various laws relating to the Public Registry and Notarial Archives.

I assent.

G EORGE A BELA

(L.S.)

President

8th March, 2011

ACT No. I of 2011

AN ACT to amend various laws relating to the Public Registry

and Notarial Archives.

BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament

assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

The short title of this Act is the Various Laws (Notarial Short title.

Acts, Archives and Profession) (Amendment) Act, 2011.

PART I

Amendment to the Civil Code

(1) This Part amends the Civil Code, and it shall be read Amendment to

and construed as one with the Civil Code, hereinafter in this Part the

Civil Code.

referred to as "the Code".

(2) The provisions of this Part shall come into force on such

date as the Minister responsible for justice may, by notice in the

Gazette, establish, and different dates may be so established for

different purposes of this Part.

Sub-article (5) of article 306 of the Code shall be

substituted by the following new sub-article

"(5) The Director of the Public Registry shall be the only

competent person to represent in any capacity the Public

Registry in any legal proceedings under this Code or any other

law, so however that he may delegate such duties, including

judicial representation, to one or more Assistant Directors either

on an ad hoc basis or on a more permanent one.".

PART II

Amendments to the Notarial Profession

and Notarial Archives Act

(1) This Part amends the Notarial Profession and

Notarial Archives Act and it shall be read and construed as one with

the Notarial Profession and Notarial Archives Act, hereinafter in this

Part referred to as "the principal Act".

(2) This Part shall come into force on such date as the Minister

responsible for notarial affairs may by notice in the Gazette appoint,

and different dates may be so appointed for different provisions or for

different purposes of this Part.

Subarticle (2) of article 3 of the principal Act shall

substituted by the following new subarticle

"(2) Saving the provisions of articles 14 and 22, in so far

as they relate to the offices of Chief Notary to Government or

Notary to Government, no person holding an office of profit

under the Government, except the office of Director or Assistant

Director of the Public Registry or Director or Assistant Director

of the Land Registry, may be appointed to be a Notary

Provided that the Director or the Assistant Director

of the Public Registry and the Director or Assistant Director of

the Land Registry may not practise as a notary except in the

capacity of Chief Notary to Government or Notary to

Government.".

Article 14 of the principle Act shall be amended as

follows

(a)

in the proviso to paragraph (a) of subarticle (1)

thereof, the words "or Notary Public in the Government

Property Division or Notary Public with the Housing Authority"

shall be deleted; and

(b) in subarticle (3) thereof, the words "or of Notary

Public in the Government Property Division or of Notary Public

with the Housing Authority" shall be deleted.

Article 22 of the principal Act shall be substituted by the Substitution of

article 22 of the

following new article

principal Act.

"22. (1) There shall be a Chief Notary to Government

and one or more Notaries to Government as may be established

in Schedule II, such that all notaries indicated in the said

Schedule shall be under the direct supervision of the Chief

Notary to Government even though they may be specifically

assigned with any other department or entity.

(2) The Chief Notary to Government and Notaries to

Government shall be appointed from among notaries appointed

by the President of Malta in accordance with the provisions of

Title I of Part II.

(3) The functions of Chief Notary to Government and

Notaries to Government shall consist in receiving those deeds

only to which the Government, any corporate body established

by law, or, as may be authorized by the Minister in each case,

any partnership or any other body in which the Government of

Malta or any such body as aforesaid have a controlling interest

or over which they have effective control, is a party, in having

the custody of the deeds respectively received by them and in

serving out copies and extracts of or from such deeds during

their tenure of office. The notary shall also tender advice,

examine researches or perform other duties as may be within his

competence and as may be required by the Chief Notary to

Government or the head of the department or entity to which he

is assigned.

(4) (a) A Notary to Government, even though assigned

duties in a particular department or entity, shall exercise such

duties, powers and functions as may be delegated or assigned to

him by the Chief Notary to Government, provided that in

assigning such duties the Chief Notary shall seek, in writing, the

advice of the head of department or entity where the notary is

assigned before deciding on such delegation.

(b) The Chief Notary may require one or more of

the Notaries to Government to be assigned with any

Government department or entity as may be required for the

better management of the notarial work indicated in sub-article

(3).

(5) In the case of absence or other lawful impediment of

the Chief Notary to Government, the Minister responsible for

notarial affairs may delegate one of the Notaries to Government

for the Island of Malta, or appoint another notary to discharge

the duties of the Chief Notary to Government or of any of the

Notaries listed in Schedule II.

(6) The office of Chief Notary to Government or of

Notary to Government shall be deemed not to be incompatible

with the office of Archivist of the Public Registry.".

Article 105 of the principal Act shall be amended as

(a)

for the words "shall be served." there shall be

substituted the words "shall be served:" and

(b) immediately after the words "shall be served:" there

shall be added the following new provisos

"Provided that where the removal of any of the

acts, registers and indexes referred to in this article is

requested by a person or entity for a cultural, scientific or

forensic purpose, within the Maltese Islands, it shall be at

the discretion of the Archivist, after consultation with an

expert in the field of conservation and preservation of

documents, and after obtaining endorsement by the

Minister responsible for notarial affairs, to authorise their

removal from the Archives. Such person or entity shall

ensure that they are returned and replaced as soon as the

purpose for which they shall have been removed from the

Archives shall have been served and in no case shall their

removal from the Archives exceed twenty calendar days

Provided further that where such acts, registers and

indexes are removed for the purposes of this sub-article,

any measures considered necessary by the Archivist,

including those relating to security and insurance cover,

shall be taken by the persons or entity requesting their

removal to the satisfaction of the Archivist and expert

abovementioned.".

The Schedule to the principal Act shall be renumbered as Renumbering of

the Schedule to

"Schedule I".

the principal

Act.

In articles 81, 101, 104, 110 and 146 of the principal Act, General

for the word "Schedule", wherever it occurs, there shall be substituted amendment

to

the principal

Act.

the words "Schedule I".

Immediately after Schedule I, as renumbered, of the Addition of new

schedule to the

principal Act, there shall be added the following new Schedule

principal Act.

"Schedule II

Notaries to Government

(unless otherwise indicated includes Malta and Gozo

as may be required)

Notary to Government

Assistant Director Public Registry

Assistant Director Land Registry

Notary with the Housing Authority

Notary with the Joint Office

Notary with the Government Property Division".

PART III

Amendment to the Notarial Acts (Temporary Provisions) Act

(1) This Part amends the Notarial Acts (Temporary Amendment to

Provisions) Act and it shall be read and construed as one with the the

Notarial

Acts

Notarial Acts (Temporary Provisions) Act, hereinafter in this Part (Temporary

Provisions) Act.

referred to as "the principal Act".

(2) This Part shall come into force on such date as the Minister

responsible for notarial affairs may by notice in the Gazette appoint,

and different dates may be so appointed for different purposes of this

Part.

In the proviso to subarticle (8) of article 4 of the principal

Act, the words "Such inspection of Acts deposited in the archives

shall be carried out at the archives." shall be deleted.

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 320 of the

1st March, 2011.

M ICHAEL F RENDO

Speaker

P AULINE A BELA

Clerk to the House of Representatives