Bills of Exchange Act 1949
Table of Contents
Long Title
Part 1 PRELIMINARY
1 Short title
2 Interpretation
Part 2 BILLS OF EXCHANGE
Form and interpretation
3 Bill of exchange defined
4 Inland and foreign bills
5 Effect where different parties to bill are the same person
6 Address to drawee
7 Certainty required as to payee
8 What bills are negotiable
9 Sum payable
10 Bill payable on demand
11 Bill payable at future time
12 Omission of date in bill payable after date or acceptance after sight
13 Antedating and post-dating
14 Computation of time of payment
15 Case of need
16 Optional stipulations by drawer or indorser
17 Definition and requisites of acceptance
18 Time for acceptance
19 General and qualified acceptances
20 Inchoate instruments
21 Delivery
Capacity and authority of parties
22 Capacity of parties
23 Signature essential to liability
24 Forged or unauthorised signature
25 Procuration signatures
26 Person signing as agent or in representative capacity
Consideration for a bill
27 Value and holder for value
28 Accommodation party to bill
29 Holder in due course
30 Presumption of value and good faith
Negotiation of bills
31 Negotiation of bill
32 Requisites of a valid indorsement
33 Conditional indorsement
34 Indorsement in blank and special indorsement
35 Restrictive indorsement
36 Negotiation of overdue or dishonoured bill
37 Negotiation of bill to party already liable thereon
38 Rights of holder
General duties of holder
39 When presentment for acceptance is necessary
40 Time for presenting bill payable after sight
41 Rules as to presentment for acceptance and excuses for non‑presentment
42 Non-acceptance
43 Dishonour by non-acceptance and its consequences
44 Duties as to qualified acceptances
45 Rules as to presentment for payment
46 Excuses for delay or non-presentment for payment
47 Dishonour by non-payment
48 Notice of dishonour and effect of non-notice
49 Rules as to notice of dishonour
50 Excuses for delay in giving notice of dishonour
51 Noting or protest of bill
52 Duties of holder as regards drawee or acceptor
Liabilities of parties
53 Funds in hands of drawee
54 Liability of acceptor
55 Liability of drawer or indorser
56 Stranger signing bill liable as indorser
57 Measure of damages against parties to dishonoured bill
58 Transferor by delivery and transferee
Discharge of bill
59 Payment in due course
60 Banker paying demand draft whereon indorsement is forged
61 Acceptor the holder at maturity
62 Express waiver or renunciation
63 Cancellation
64 Alteration of bill
Acceptance and payment for honour
65 Acceptance for honour supra protest
66 Liability of acceptor for honour
67 Presentment to acceptor for honour
68 Payment for honour supra protest
Lost instruments
69 Holder’s right to duplicate of lost bill
70 Suit on lost bill
Bill in a set
71 Rules as to sets
Conflict of laws
72 Rules where laws conflict
Part 3 CHEQUES DRAWN ON BANKER
73 Cheque defined
74 Presentment of cheque for payment
75 Revocation of banker’s authority
Crossed cheques
76 General and special crossings defined
77 Crossing by drawer or after issue
78 Crossing a material part of cheque
79 Duties of banker as to crossed cheques
80 Protection to banker and drawer where cheque is crossed
81 Effect of "not negotiable" crossing on holder
82 Non-transferable cheques
Special provisions relating to indorsement, etc.
83 Protection of bankers paying unindorsed or irregularly indorsed cheques, etc.
84 Rights of bankers collecting cheques not indorsed by holders
85 Unindorsed cheques as evidence of payment
86 Protection of bankers collecting payment of cheques, or certain other instruments
87 Application of certain provisions to instruments not being bills of exchange
88 Saving
Special provisions relating to cheque truncation
89 Alternative means of presentment
90 Image return document
Regulations relating to cheque truncation
91 Regulations
Part 4 PROMISSORY NOTES
92 Promissory note defined
93 Delivery necessary
94 Joint and several notes
95 Note payable on demand
96 Presentment of note for payment
97 Liability of maker
98 Application of Part 2 to notes
Part 5 SUPPLEMENTARY
99 Good faith
100 Signature
101 Computation of time
102 Obligation to do acts relating to bills and notes on Sundays or public holidays
103 When noting equivalent to protest
104 Protest when notary not accessible
105 Dividend warrants and banker’s draft may be crossed
106 Saving
Legislative History
Abbreviations