ACT No. XXIX of 1980 AN ACT to repeul the War Damage Ordinance, 1943, and to make pro­ vision for matters consequential or incidental there to 01' connected Iherewith.

I assent.

ANTON BUTTIGIEG

(L.S.)

President

31st October, 1980

ACT No. XXIX of 1980

AN ACT to repeul the War Damage Ordinance, 1943, and to make pro­

vision for matters consequential or incidental there to 01' connected

Iherewith.

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

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament as­

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

This Act may be cited as the War Damage (RepeaI) Act, 1980 .

. � I.

in this Act, unless the context otherwise requires -

Dan l-Att jista' jissejjaħ l-Att ta' 1-1980 li jħassar l-Ordinanza

dwar il-Ħsarat tal-Gwerra.

F'dan l-Att, kemm-i! darba r-rabta tal-kliem ma teħtieġx xort'

"appointed day" means the day appointed as such by the

Minister by notice in the Gazette, and different days may be so ap­

pointed for different provisions or different purposes of this Act;

"Commission" means the War Damage Commission set up in

accordance with section 3 of the Ordinance;

"Minister" means the Minister responsible for j ustice, acting

after consultation with the Minister responsible for finance;

"Ordinance" means the War Damage Ordinance, 1943;

"Secretary" means the person for the time being appointed

under the Ordinance as Secretary to the Commission.

(1) As soon as practicable after the coming in to force of this

Act, the Secretary shalI, in his capacity as Secretary, lodge in the First

Hall of the Civil Court such sums of money as according to the records

and past experience of the Commission will be sufficient to meet each

of the several c1aims pending before the Commission immediately before

the date of the coming into force of this Act and which were not, on that

date, barred by prescription.

(2) Such lodgement shall be made by separate schedules of

deposit for each of the claims aforesaid; and with respect to such

schedules the following provisions of this subsection shall, notwithstand­

ing any other law, have effect

where the original c1aimant, or any of the original c1ai­

(a)

is dead or has assigned or othewise d i spo se d of his rights

mants,

under the Ordinance, or where for any other reason the Secretary

deems it expedient so to act, any lod g e m ent m ade under this s ec t ion

may be made in favour of any one or more of the heirs or successors

of the original c1aimant, or o th e r person c1aiming under hOO, in re­

presentation of all persons having an interest in the moneys so

l o d g e d ;

the omission f r o m the schedule of deposit of any one or

(b)

more persons having an i n t e r e s t

in any part of the moneys lodged

under this section shalI not invalidate or otherwise affect the opera­

tion of any such l o d g e m e n t ; but the rights of any such person shall,

notwithstanding such omission, remain unprejudiced;

(c) a schedule of deposit made under this section shall be

served only on persons who are named in t h e schedule of deposit

and who are ordinarily resident in Malta on the day the schedule is

filed in court; and if within three months from such day t h e

schedule cannot be served on any of the persons a f o r esaid either

,

by reason of absence or for any other reason, such person shall,

for the purposes of t h i s section, be treated as if he were not ordi­

narily resident in Malta.

(3) When all lodgements have been made, the Secretary shall

deal with the books, records, papers and other documents belonging to

or held by or on beha1f of the Commission, in such mannel' as the Minis­

ter may direct.

W it h o u t p1'ejudice to anything lawfully done or omitted to be

done thereunde1', and subject to the other provisions of this Act, the War

Damage Ordinance, 1943, is hereby repealed with effect from th e ap­

pointed day.

(1) Notwithstanding the repeal of the Ordinance all moneys

lodged in court under section 3 of this Act, shall remain pay a b le to the

persons who, but for such repeal, would have been entitled thereto or to

any part thereof; but all payments thereof shall be governed exclusively

by the provision of this Act and shall be due subject to the p r o v is ion s of

this Act.

(2) With respect to any moneys lodged as a fo r e s a i d the

.

following provisions of this subsection shall notwithstanding any other

law, have effect

all sums shall be paid 01' o t he r wi s e dealt with by the

(a)

Registrar of the Superior Courts only in accordance with directions

given by the Minister and signified by means of a note filed in the

Registry of the Superior Courts by 01' on behalf of the Attomey

General;

(b) in giving any direction under paragraph (a) of this sub­

secti o n the Minister shall

(i)

in all cases, take into account the rights of any

p e r son who appears to him to have an interest in any part of

the deposit as if the Ordinance had not been repealed;

(ii) with respect to any c1aim relating to works which are

not completed on the date of the f i l in g of the relative schedule

of deposit, exercise such functions and enforce such require­

ments as couId have been exercised 01' enforced by the Com­

mission if the Ordinance had still been in force and with res­

pect to any c1aim ensure that no payment is made which

could not have lawfuIly been made by the Commission if the

Ordinance had still been in force; and

(iiD

where any sum wouId, but for the repeaI of the

Ordinance, have been due to the Commission by any person

entitled to any par t of the deposit, deduct such sum from any

moneys due to be paid out of such deposit.

(3) On the expiration of the period applicable to the case as

provided in subsection (4) of this section, any balances remaining unpaid,

or otherwise disposed of, out of any sums lodged under this section, shalI

be forfeited in favour of the Government and shall be paid by the

Registrar of the Superior Courts into the Consolidated Fund in accord­

ance with directives given by the Minister by means of a note filed in

the Registry of the Superior Courts by and on beha1f of the Attomey

General.

The periods referred to in subsection (3) of this seetion

(4)

where payment is due for works compIeted before the

(a)

appointed day, two years after that day;

where payment is due for works not completed or not

(b)

undertaken before the appointed day -

(i) six months after the appointed day, if the works are

not undertaken and continued in eamest or if already under­

taken they are not continued in eamest within that period;

(ii)

two years from the appointed day if the works are

undertaken and continued in eamest or so continued as afore­

said

Provided that if, having been undertaken and continued

or continued as aforesaid, the works are discontinued or not

continued with due diligence, the period referred to in subsec­

tion (3) of this section shall be the period ending on the day

certified by the Minister under his hand to be the day on which

the works were discontinued or not continued with due di1i­

gence.

(5) Notwithstanding anything

contained in

the foregoing

provisions of this section -

(a) if on the expiration of two years after the appointed day

payment would, but for the provisions of sub-paragraph (iD of para­

graph (b) of subsection (3) of this seetion have been due, and the

Minister is satisfied that the works in respect of which such pay­

ment wou1d have been so due were eompIeted before the expiration

of the period aforesaid, he may, if he deems it equitable so to act,

direct the payment to be made as if the period had not expired;

(b) where the Minister is satisfied that any amount deposited

under section 3 o f this Aet is not sufficient to meet the claim in

respeet of which sueh deposit is made, he may direet the Registrar

to pay out of any balanee remaining unpaid or otherwise disposed

of under this section such sum of sums as he may deem neeessary

to meet the c.Iaim aforesaid.

Notwithstanding the repeal of the Ordinanee, all debts and

other rights which immediately before the appointed day were due or

pertained to or were exercisable by the Commission shall, with effect

from the appointed day, become due or vest in an d be exercisable by

the Minis t e r in the s a me manner, as far as practicable, as if he were the

Commission and the Ordinance had not been repealed.

(1) No person shall h a v e any c1aim under the Ordinance or

otherwise in respect of war d a ma ge as defined by the Ordinance except

as and to the e xt e nt provided by this Act.

(2) N 0 action shall lie against the Minister or against the

Registrar of the Superior Courts in respect of anything done or omitted

to b e done by them under this Act

.

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 430 of the 28th October,

] 980.

C. AGIUS

Speaker

C. MIFSUD

Clerk to the House of Representafives

Ippubblikat mld·Dipartiment ta' 1·lnforrnazzjoni

-

!l·U.C.S.

Stamperij. tal-Gvern

Printed al the C.O.S.

Government Printing Pres.

Stampat

-

-

-