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Bankruptcy Act

(CHAPTER 20)

(Original Enactment: Ordinance 2 of 1888)

REVISED EDITION 1985

(30th March 1987)

An Act relating to the law of bankruptcy.

[3rd December 1888]

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Bankruptcy Act.

Interpretation

2. In this Act, unless there is something repugnant in the subject or context —

“available act of bankruptcy” means any act of bankruptcy available for a bankruptcy petition at the date of the presentation of the petition on which the receiving order is made;

“bankruptcy petition” includes a petition for a receiving order;

“consultative committee” means a committee appointed under section 25;

“court” means the court having jurisdiction in bankruptcy under this Act;

“debt provable in bankruptcy” or “provable debt” includes any debt or liability by this Act made provable in bankruptcy;

“deed of arrangement” includes any of the following instruments, whether under seal or not, made by, for, or in respect of the affairs of a debtor for the benefit of his creditors generally:

(a)	an assignment of property;
(b)	a deed or agreement for a composition,

and in cases where creditors of a debtor obtain any control over the property or business —

(c)	a deed of inspectorship entered into for the purpose of winding up or carrying on a business;
(d)	a letter of licence authorising the debtor or any other person to manage, carry on, realise or dispose of a business with a view to the payment of debts; and
(e)	any agreement or instrument entered into for the purpose of carrying on or winding up the debtor’s business, or authorising the debtor or any other person to manage, carry on, realise or dispose of the debtor’s business with a view to the payment of his debts;

“gazetted” means published in the Gazette;

“general rules” includes forms;

“goods” includes all chattels personal;

“liability” includes any compensation for work or labour done, any obligation or possibility of an obligation to pay money or money’s worth on the breach of any express or implied covenant, contract, agreement or undertaking, whether the breach does or does not occur or is or is not likely to occur or capable of occurring before the discharge of the debtor, and generally it includes any express or implied engagement, agreement or undertaking to pay, or capable of resulting in the payment of money or money’s worth, whether the payment is as respects amount fixed or unliquidated or as respects time, present or future, certain or dependent on any one contingency or on two or more contingencies, or as to mode of valuation capable of being ascertained by fixed rules or as matter of opinion;

“ordinary resolution” means a resolution decided by a majority in value of the creditors present personally or by proxy at a meeting of creditors and voting on the resolution;

“property” includes money, goods, things in action, land and every description of property, whether real or personal and whether situate in Singapore or elsewhere; also obligations, easements and every description of estate, interest and profit, present or future, vested or contingent, arising out of or incident to property as above defined;

“Registrar” means the Registrar of the Supreme Court and includes the Deputy Registrar;

“resolution” means ordinary resolution;

“secured creditor” means a person holding a mortgage, charge or lien on the property of the debtor or any part thereof as a security for a debt due to him from the debtor;

“Sheriff” includes any officer charged with the execution of a writ or other process of the High Court;

“special resolution” means a resolution decided by a majority in number and three-fourths in value of the creditors present personally or by proxy at a meeting of creditors and voting on the resolution.