The Short Title of this Act shall be “The Resident Magistrates Act 1868.”

The term “the said Act” where used in this Act shall mean “The Resident Magistrates Act 1867” and this Act shall be read and construed as part of the said Act.

It is hereby declared and enacted that when the limit of jurisdiction of any Resident Magistrate’s Court of any district has been or shall be extended under the provisions contained in the said Act and more than one Resident Magistrate shall have been appointed for such district it has been and shall hereafter be lawful for the Governor to order under the provisions contained in the eighth section of the said Act that all or any or any one of the Resident Magistrates appointed for such district shall exercise the extended jurisdiction therein.

Under special circumstances the Court may permit any party to appear by an agent appointed in writing by any one of several plaintiffs or defendants where such plaintiffs or defendants are sued as copartners or where the party is out of the Colony by any agent appointed in writing by any person holding a power of attorney from such party authorizing such person to sue for and in the name of such party.

So much of the seventy-fourth section of the said Act as provides that no person shall be imprisoned on account of any judgment debt of less than ten pounds in amount is hereby repealed.

The seventy-fourth and seventy-fifth sections of the said Act shall apply only to judgment debts of more than ten pounds in amount.

It shall be lawful for any Resident Magistrate or Justice of the Peace upon the application of any party who has obtained judgment under the authority of the said Act for the payment of any debt or damages of less than ten pounds in amount and which remains wholly or partly unsatisfied to issue his summons (1.) directed to the party against whom such judgment shall have been obtained requiring him to appear at a time and place to be in such summons mentioned at the Resident Magistrate’s Court in which such judgment shall have been given or at the Resident Magistrate’s Court or Petty Sessions Court of the district within which he shall then be residing or carrying on business or before any Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace near unto the place where he shall reside or carry on business if he shall reside or carry on business in a place not comprised within the limits of any Resident Magistrate’s or Petty Sessions District to answer such things as are named in such summons and if he shall appear in pursuance of such summons it shall be lawful for the Court or the Resident Magistrate or Justices as the case may be to examine him upon oath touching his estate and effects and the manner and circumstances under which he contracted the debt or incurred the liability as to which judgment has been obtained against him and as to the means and expectations he then had and as to the property and means he still hath of discharging the said debt or damages or liability and as to the disposal he may have made of any property and the person applying for such summons as aforesaid and all other persons whom the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices as the case may he shall think requisite may be examined upon oath touching the inquiries authorized to be made as aforesaid and the costs of such summons and of all proceedings thereon shall be deemed costs in the cause.

If at the time and place mentioned in such summons as last aforesaid the party so summoned shall not appear when called and no sufficient excuse shall be alleged for his not appearing it shall be lawful for the Court Resident Magistrate or for any two Justices of the Peace upon proof that such summons was duly served a reasonable time before the time thereby appointed for appearance thereto either to proceed to make such inquiries as aforesaid in the absence of the party summoned or to issue a warrant under the hand of the Resident Magistrate or one of such Justices (2.) directed to the bailiff of the Court or any constable requiring him to apprehend the party so failing to appear and to bring him at a certain time and place to be in such warrant mentioned before the Court or before such Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace as shall then be there to answer to such things as shall be named in such warrant.

If the party attending in obedience to any such summons or brought up by virtue of any such warrant shall refuse to be sworn or to disclose any of the things aforesaid or if he shall not make answer touching the same to the satisfaction of the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace as the case may be or if it shall appear to the Court or the Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace either by the examination of the party or by any other evidence that such party if a defendant in incurring the debt or liability which is the subject of the action in which judgment has been obtained has obtained credit from the plaintiff under false pretences or by means of fraud or breach of trust or has wilfully contracted such debt or liability without having had at the same time a reasonable expectation of being able to pay or discharge the same or has with intent to defraud his creditors or any of them made or caused to be made any gift delivery or transfer of any property or charged removed or concealed the same or if it shall appear to the satisfaction of the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace that the party so summoned has then or has had since the judgment obtained against him sufficient means and ability to pay the debt or damages or costs so recovered against him either altogether or by any instalment or instalments which the Court in which the judgment shall have been obtained shall have ordered and if he shall refuse or neglect to pay the same as shall have been so ordered or as shall be ordered pursuant to the order hereinafter provided it shall be lawful for the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace if it he or they shall think fit to order that such party be committed to any convenient gaol for any period not exceeding three calendar months And it is hereby expressly declared that when a debtor is committed under this section of this Act the creditor at whose instance such debtor shall be committed shall not be required to pay the maintenance money required to be paid by the three hundred and eleventh section of “The Bankruptcy Act 1867.”

It shall be lawful for the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace before which or whom any such summons shall be heard if it he or they shall think fit to rescind or alter any order that shall have been previously made against any defendant so summoned before it him or them for the payment by instalments or otherwise of any debt or damages recovered and to make any further or other order either for the payment of the whole of such debt or damages and costs forthwith or by any instalments or in any other manner as the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices may think reasonable and just.

In every case where the defendant in any suit brought in any Resident Magistrate’s Court shall personally appear at the trial of the same the Court at the hearing of the cause or at any adjournment thereof if judgment shall be given against the defendant for any sum less than ten pounds shall have the same power and authority of examining the defendant and the plaintiff and other parties touching the several things hereinbefore mentioned and of committing the defendant to prison and of making an order as the Court or a Resident Magistrate or any two Justices might have and exercise under the provisions hereinbefore contained in case the plaintiff had obtained a summons for that purpose after the judgment obtained as hereinbefore mentioned.

When any order of commitment shall have been made as aforesaid the Resident Magistrate or any Justice of the Peace making or concurring in such order shall issue a warrant under his hand (3.) directed to the bailiff of any Resident Magistrate’s Court or Petty Sessions Court or to some other person by name who by such warrant shall be empowered to take the body of the person against whom such order shall be made and the gaoler or keeper of any gaol mentioned in such warrant shall be bound to receive and keep the defendant therein until discharged under the provisions of this Act or otherwise by due course of law and no protection order or other proceeding granted by any Court under any provisions for the relief of insolvent debtors shall be available to discharge any defendant from any commitment under such last-mentioned order.

No imprisonment under this Act shall in anywise operate as a satisfaction or extinguishment of the debt or other cause of action on which a judgment has been obtained or protect the defendant from being anew summoned and imprisoned for any new fraud or other default rendering him liable to be imprisoned under this Act or deprive the plaintiff of any right to take out execution or successive executions against the goods and chattels of the defendant in the same manner as if such imprisonment had not taken place.

When any person shall under the provisions hereinbefore contained be committed to prison from any Resident Magistrate’s Court or Court of Petty Sessions by any Resident Magistrate or any two Justices of the Peace he shall be committed to prison and be imprisoned in some public gaol in the Province in which such Court is situate and shall be kept in that part of such gaol in which debtors imprisoned in such gaol under civil process from the Supreme Court are usually confined and be subject to any regulations made in respect of such debtors for the time being in force.

Any person imprisoned under this Act who shall have paid or satisfied the debt or demand or the instalments thereof payable and costs remaining due at the time of the order of imprisonment being made together with the costs of obtaining such order and all subsequent costs shall be discharged out of custody upon the certificate of such payment or satisfaction signed by the Clerk of the Court by leave of the Court Resident Magistrate or Justices of the Peace by which or whom the order of the imprisonment was made.

The eight preceding sections shall apply only to judgments for payment of debt or damages of less than ten pounds in amount.

Whenever it is made to appear to the satisfaction of any Resident Magistrate having jurisdiction to the amount of the claim by affidavit of any plaintiff or his authorized agent that he has a good cause of action against any defendant residing or being within his district for any sum within the jurisdiction of such Magistrate under the said Act and that there is probable cause the grounds of which shall be stated in such affidavit for believing that such defendant is about to leave the Colony with intent fraudulently to evade the payment of such sum it shall be lawful for such Magistrate to issue a warrant under his hand returnable immediately and thereupon to cause such defendant to be brought before him and upon investigation of the case either to discharge such defendant or to hold him to bail for any sum not exceeding the amount sworn to in such affidavit Provided that it shall be lawful for any defendant against whom such warrant has issued for any amount to deposit with the officer executing such warrant or with the Clerk of the Court in lieu of bail such amount with three pounds for costs and the sum so deposited shall be paid applied and disposed of according to the judgment of the Court in the action in which the deposit is made Provided also that it shall be lawful for any Resident Magistrate before whom any defendant is brought under authority of any warrant to be issued as aforesaid with the consent in writing of the defendant to hear and finally adjudicate upon the claim of the plaintiff in such proceeding.

In any case in which any Resident Magistrate hears and finally adjudicates upon the claim of any plaintiff under the power contained in the preceding section and gives judgment for the plaintiff it shall be lawful for him to made an order for the immediate payment of the amount of such judgment with costs not exceeding forty shillings and execution may be at once issued notwithstanding that the sum received for debt or damages does not amount to ten pounds and such other proceedings may be had thereon as if the same were a judgment obtained in the ordinary course of procedure.

If in any such proceeding judgment is given for the defendant it shall be lawful for any Resident Magistrate giving such judgment at his discretion to award to such defendant by way of compensation any sum not exceeding twenty pounds and such award shall be deemed to be a judgment of the Court and execution may issue thereon.

Whenever neither a Judge nor Registrar nor Deputy Registrar of the Supreme Court shall reside within any district constituted under the said Act the Resident Magistrate of such district shall have the same powers in all cases as the Supreme Court to grant a writ of arrest for the purpose of holding to bail a defendant who is about to quit the Colony and also to order the person arrested to be discharged from custody or the bail-bond to be given up that it may be cancelled or the writ of arrest to be set aside Provided always that it shall not be necessary to issue a writ of summons in the Supreme Court before a writ of arrest may be granted by a Resident Magistrate Provided always that any writ of arrest and all proceedings thereon may be dealt with by a Judge of the Supreme Court as though such writ had issued from that Court Provided also that the rules for the time being in force regulating the practice and procedure in the application for issue of and generally with regard to writs of arrest to be issued by Judges of District Courts shall apply to writs of arrest to be issued by Resident Magistrates under this section of this Act and shall be observed accordingly.

The forms referred to by number only in this Act are those in the Schedule hereto and the provisions contained in the thirty-ninth section of the said Act shall apply to the forms in the Schedule hereto.