Article 43 The registry of deeds

Section 7(1) of the Deeds Act (which requires the registry of deeds to be situated in Belfast) shall cease to have effect.

In section 7(2)(a) of that Act for “an assistant registrar” there shall be substituted “such assistant registrars”.

For section 7(4) and (5) of that Act there shall be substituted the following subsections:

“(4)

Each assistant registrar and other officer and person appointed under subsection (2) shall exercise, in accordance with this Act or any other statutory provision (including regulations under section 19), such of the functions of the registrar as may be assigned to him by the registrar, and shall be responsible to the registrar for the exercise of the functions so assigned.

(5)

An assistant registrar nominated by the registrar may, in accordance with any general or specific directions given by the registrar and notwithstanding any vacancy subsequently occurring in the office of registrar, act as registrar and exercise all or any of the functions of the registrar.

(5A)

Where the registrar is absent from the registry of deeds or the office of registrar is vacant and no person is acting as registrar under subsection (5) in accordance with a direction that he exercise all the functions of the registrar, the assistant registrar or, if there are more assistant registrars than one, the senior assistant registrar present may act as registrar and exercise all the functions of the registrar.

(5B)

All acts done by an assistant registrar under subsection (5) or (5A) shall, without proof of, respectively, the directions or circumstances, have the same effect in all respects as if they had been done by the registrar.” .