{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/prescription-and-limitation-scotland-act-1973/section-15",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/prescription-and-limitation-scotland-act-1973/section-15.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/1973/52",
  "legislation_title": "Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/prescription-and-limitation-scotland-act-1973",
  "path": "section/15",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "15",
  "heading": "Interpretation of Part I.",
  "text": "(1) In this Part of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them, namely—\n“bill of exchange” has the same meaning as it has for the purposes of the Bills of Exchange Act 1882;\n“date of execution”, in relation to a deed executed on several dates, means the last of those dates;\n“enactment” includes an order, regulation, rule or other instrument having effect by virtue of an Act and includes an enactment contained in, or in an instrument made under, an Act of the Scottish Parliament;\n“holiday” has the meaning assigned to it by section 14 of this Act;\n...\n“land” includes heritable property of any description;\n“lease” includes a sub-lease;\n“legal disability” means legal disability by reason of nonage or unsoundness of mind;\n“possession” includes civil possession, and “possessed” shall be construed accordingly;\n“prescriptive period” means a period required for the operation of section 1, 2, 3, 6, 7 8 or 8A of this Act;\n“promissory note” has the same meaning as it has for the purposes of the Bills of Exchange Act 1882;\n“trustee” includes any person holding property in a fiduciary capacity for another and, without prejudice to that generality, includes a trustee within the meaning of the Trusts (Scotland) Act 1921; and “trust” shall be construed accordingly;\nand references to the recording of a deed are references to the recording thereof in the General Register of Sasinesand to the registering of a deed are to the registering thereof in the Land Register of Scotland.\n(2) In this Part of this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to an obligation or to a right includes a reference to the right or, as the case may be, to the obligation (if any), correlative thereto.\n(3) In this Part of this Act any reference to an enactment shall, unless the context otherwise requires, be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended or extended, and as including a reference thereto as applied, by or under any other enactment.",
  "extent": "S",
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Words in s. 15(1) inserted (28.2.2025) by Prescription (Scotland) Act 2018 (asp 15), ss. 9(3), 17(2); S.S.I. 2022/78, reg. 2(1) (with regs. 1(2), 3(1), 4(1))"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F2",
      "text": "Words in s. 15(1) repealed (28.11.2004) by Abolition of Feudal Tenure etc. (Scotland) Act 2000 (asp 5), ss. 71, 77(2), Sch. 12 paras. 33(4), Sch. 13 Pt. 1 (with ss. 58, 62, 75); S.S.I. 2003/456, art. 2"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F3",
      "text": "Words substituted by Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1984 (c. 45, SIF 97), s. 6(1), Sch. 1 para. 7"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F4",
      "text": "Words in s. 15(1) inserted (8.12.2014) by Land Registration etc. (Scotland) Act 2012 (asp 5), ss. 122, 123, Sch. 5 paras. 18(5) (with s. 121, Sch. 4 paras. 13, 16); S.S.I. 2014/127, art. 2"
    },
    {
      "type": "M",
      "label": "M1",
      "text": "1882 c. 61(13)."
    },
    {
      "type": "M",
      "label": "M2",
      "text": "1921 c. 58(128)."
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [
    {
      "type": "words substituted",
      "affecting": "asp/2024/2",
      "affecting_title": "Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1973/52/section/15",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T10:46:51.032439+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}