(1 )F1Subject to subsection (2), any amendment of a society's rules as for the time being registered under this Act shall not be valid until the amendment has been so registered, for which purpose there shall be sent to the registrar two copies of the amendment signed—
(a)in the case of a society for the time being consisting solely of registered societies, by the secretary of the society and byF2. . . the secretary of each[F2 (or, if more than two, of each of any two)] of the constituent societies;
(b)in any other case, by three members and the secretary of the society.
(2)Subsection (1) shall not apply to a change in the situation of a society's registered office or in the name of a society; but—
(a)notice of any change in the situation of a society's registered office shall be sent to the registrar; and
(b)where such a notice is duly sent, or where a change in the name of a registered society is made in accordance with section 5(3), the change in the situation of the society's registered office or, as the case may be, the change in the society's name shall be registered by the registrar as an amendment of the society's rules.
(3)Subject to subsection (6), the registrar, on being satisfied that any amendment of a society's rules is not contrary to the provisions of this Act, shall issue to the society in respect of that amendment an acknowledgment of registration [F3, bearing the registrar’s seal,] which shall be conclusive evidence that it is duly registered.
(4)Notwithstanding anything in the rules of any society, the committee of a registered society may by resolution passed during the appropriate period after the passing of this Act make such amendments of the rules of the society as may be consequential on the provisions of this Act.
(5)For the purposes of subsection (4) the appropriate period after the passing of this Act, in relation to any society, shall be whichever is the longer of the following two periods, that is to say—
(a)a period of one year beginning with the date of the passing of this Act, and
(b)a period beginning with the date of the passing of this Act and ending with the date on which an amendment of the rules of that society is first registered after that date under subsection (3).
(6)Notwithstanding anything in subsection (3), after the end of one year beginning with the date of the passing of this Act, the registrar shall not be required to register any amendment of a society's rules unless such consequential amendments of the rules of that society as are mentioned in subsection (4) either have been made before the application for registration of that amendment or are to be effected by that amendment.
F1mod. by 1992 NI 15
F3Words in s. 9(3) substituted (6.4.2018 immediately after 2016 c. 16 (N.I.), s. 8(2) comes into force) by The Financial Services Act 2012 (Mutual Societies) Order 2018 (S.I. 2018/323), art. 1, Sch. 2 para. 5 (with art. 3)
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 9 applied (with modifications) by S.I. 1992/1725 (N.I. 15), art. 29(6)-(8) (as substituted (29.8.2020) by Housing (Amendment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020 (c. 5), ss. 6(5), 10(2))
C2S. 9(3) modified (31.7.2006) by Community Benefit Societies (Restriction on Use of Assets) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 (S.R. 2006/258), reg. 17, Sch. 2 para. 1(2)