Article 3 Electronic communications

(1)

In these Rules, and in relation to the use of electronic communications for any purpose of these Rules which is capable of being carried out electronically—

(a)

the expression “address” includes any number or address used for the purposes of such communications, except that where any provision of these Rules requires any person to provide a name and address to any other person, the requirement shall not be fulfilled unless the person subject to the requirement provides a postal address;

(b)

references to statements, notices, or other documents, or to copies of such documents, include references to such documents or copies of them in electronic form.

(2)

Paragraphs (3) to (7) apply where an electronic communication is used by a person for the purpose of fulfilling any requirement of these Rules to give or send any statement, notice or other document to any other person (“the recipient”).

(3)

The requirement shall be taken to be fulfilled where the statement, notice or other document transmitted by means of the electronic communication is—

(a)

capable of being accessed by the recipient;

(b)

legible in all material respects; and

(c)

sufficiently permanent to be used for subsequent reference.

(4)

In paragraph (3), “legible in all material respects” means that the information contained in the statement, notice or document is available to the recipient to no lesser extent than it would be if sent or given by means of a document in printed form.

(5)

Where the electronic communication is received by the recipient outside the recipient’s business hours, it shall be taken to have been received on the next working day; and for this purpose “working day” means a day which is not a Saturday, a Sunday, Christmas Day, Good Friday, or a day which is a bank holiday in England and Wales under the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971^f1.

(6)

A requirement of these Rules that any document shall be in writing is fulfilled where that document satisfies the criteria in paragraph (3).

(7)

A requirement in these Rules to send more than one copy of a statement, notice or other document may be complied with by transmitting one copy only of the statement, notice or other document in question.

Annotations

Footnotes

f1: 1971 c.80, to which there are amendments not relevant to these Rules.