New section 6A – Registration for preservation and execution of electronic standard securities
843.New section 6A permits an office copy of an electronic standard security, which is registered in the Land Register of Scotland, to be registered for preservation and execution in the Books of Council and Session or in the sheriff court books (the “court books”). An office copy is a paper copy issued by the Keeper of the Registers of Scotland under section 6(5) of the Land Registration (Scotland) Act 1979 (the “1979 Act”).
844.Electronic standard securities can be registered in the Land Register as part of the system of electronic conveyancing known as Automated Registration of Title to Land (“ARTL”). The legislative basis of this system is principally found in sections 1(2A) and (2B) and 2A to 2C of the 1995 Act and section 4(2A) to (2C) of the 1979 Act (as inserted by the Automated Registration of Title to Land (Electronic Communications) (Scotland) Order 2006 (SSI 2006/491)).
845.Registration of a document (such as a standard security) in the court books entitles a creditor to use summary diligence to enforce payment of any money due by the debtor. The court books are paper-based and, without section 6A, the holder of an electronic standard security would lose the ability to register it in them and to enforce it by summary diligence.
846.As it is intended to bring the ARTL system on stream in early 2007, section 222 is brought into force on the day after Royal Assent (see section 227(2)).