No. 9/1967:

AUCTIONEERS AND HOUSE AGENTS ACT, 1967

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

1 Interpretation.

2 Increase of deposit in High Court.

3 Substitution of one form of deposit for another.

4 Keeping and preservation of accounts.

5 Keeping of Client accounts.

6 Priority of claims to clients' moneys.

7 Vesting in Official Assignee of sums to credit of certain client accounts.

8 Provisions relating to client accounts in event of bankruptcy.

9 Preservation of lien and other rights.

10 Provisions regarding banking companies.

11 Proceedings in relation to deposits and banking accounts.

12 Amendment of section 12 of Principal Act.

13 Application of this Act.

14 Short title, collective citation, construction and commencement.

AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE AUCTIONEERS AND HOUSE AGENTS ACT, 1947

[9th May, 1967.]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:

1.—(1) In this Act—

"the Accountant" means the Accountant attached to the High Court by virtue of section 55 (1) of the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act, 1961 ;

"bank" means a bank in which it is for the time being lawful for a trustee (unless expressly forbidden) to invest trust funds by placing them in an interest bearing deposit account;

"client" includes (unless the context otherwise requires) a person to whom a refund of a deposit is due;

"client account" means a current or deposit account in the name of an auctioneer or house agent in the title of which the word "client" appears and which is kept in a bank at a branch in the State;

"company" means a company within the definition contained in the Companies Act, 1963 ;

"the Official Assignee" means the person who is for the time being the Official Assignee in Bankruptcy;

"Principal Act" means the Auctioneers and House Agents Act, 1947 .

(2) References in this Act to auctioneers shall be construed as referring only to persons required to be licensed as auctioneers under the Principal Act and references in this Act to house agents shall be construed as referring only to persons required to be licensed as house agents under the Principal Act.

(3) References in this Act to an account (being an account in a bank) shall, unless the context otherwise requires, include a reference to a deposit receipt.

(4) References in this Act to money for a client include (unless the context otherwise requires) references to a deposit paid to an auctioneer or house agent as a stakeholder or otherwise paid to him in connection with the purchase or renting of property where a right to the money has not passed to a client.

(5) Save where the context otherwise requires, this Act shall be construed as applying only to transactions carried out by an auctioneer or house agent in his capacity as auctioneer or house agent.

2.—Notwithstanding section 14 (a) of the Principal Act, the deposit maintained in the High Court under that Act shall, in respect of any period beginning on or after the 6th day of July, 1967, for which an auctioneer's licence or a house agent's licence is in force, be of the value of five thousand pounds, and the references in section 14 (d) (ii) and section 15 (3) (b) of the Principal Act to two thousand pounds shall be construed accordingly.

3.—(1) Notwithstanding section 16 of the Principal Act, a person who has made a deposit in money in the High Court under that Act may obtain a release of the deposit on condition that he has made in the High Court either a deposit of authorised securities of the required value or a deposit of a guarantee bond which is retrospective to such extent as may be necessary in order to meet any proper claim in respect of which money could have been paid out of the released deposit.

(2) Notwithstanding section 16 of the Principal Act, a person who has made a deposit in the High Court under that Act by the deposit of authorised securities may obtain a release of the deposit on condition that he has made in the High Court either a deposit in money to the required amount or a deposit of a guarantee bond which is retrospective to such extent as may be necessary in order to meet any proper claim in respect of which money could have been paid out of the released deposit.

(3) In this section—

"guarantee bond" means a guarantee bond of the type mentioned in section 14 (d) (ii) of the Principal Act;

"authorised securities" means securities authorised by rules of court for the investment of moneys under the control of the High court;

"required value" means the value required by either section 14 of the Principal Act or section 2 of this Act, as may be appropriate.

4.—(1) An auctioneer or house agent shall at all times keep properly written up such accounts as may be necessary to show all his dealings with, and particulars of and information regarding, moneys received or held by him for, or paid by him to or on behalf of, each client.

(2) An account kept by an auctioneer or house agent under this section shall be preserved for at least six years from either the date of the last entry therein or the date of the last dealing with a client's money which is required by this Act to be recorded therein, whichever is the later.

5.—(1) ( a ) Every auctioneer and every house agent shall open and keep a client account and may, if he thinks fit, open and keep more than one client account.

( b ) An auctioneer or house agent who keeps more than one client account shall keep all such accounts at the same bank unless the District Court, for special reasons, otherwise permits.

(2) When an auctioneer or house agent receives money for a client, he shall, without unnecessary delay, pay it into a client account unless the money—

( a ) is received in the form of cash and is paid without unnecessary delay in cash to the client;

( b ) is received in the form of a cheque or other negotiable instrument which is endorsed over and delivered without unnecessary delay to the client;

( c ) is paid without unnecessary delay into a separate banking account in the name of the client or some person (not being the auctioneer or house agent or a partner, employee or agent of the auctioneer or house agent) named by the client or into a joint banking account in the names of the auctioneer or house agent and the client; or

( d ) is invested by him at the written request and for the benefit of the client, in a manner in which it is for the time being lawful for a trustee (unless expressly forbidden) to invest trust funds.

(3) Where an auctioneer or house agent holds or receives a cheque or draft which includes money for a client, he shall, if practicable, apportion the cheque or draft and pay into the appropriate client account the portion representing the money for the client as if he had received a separate cheque for that amount and, if such apportionment is not practicable, he shall pay the cheque or draft in full into the client account and, where he has so paid the cheque or draft in full into the client account, he may withdraw therefrom the money that is not money for a client.

(4) No payment other than money for a client shall be made into a client account save such payment as is authorised to be made under subsection (3) or is necessary in order to open or maintain the account or to replace any sum drawn from it by mistake or accident.

(5) Money shall not be withdrawn by an auctioneer or house agent from a client account unless—

( a ) it is properly required for a payment to or on behalf of a client whose money is in that account, or

( b ) it is properly required for or towards payment of fees or commission due to the auctioneer or house agent by a client whose money is in that account, or for or towards reimbursement of expenses incurred by the auctioneer or house agent in connection with the client's business or of money paid to a client by the auctioneer or house agent out of his own funds (either in the circumstances specified in subsection (10) or otherwise to facilitate prompt payment of the client), or it is a withdrawal authorised by subsection (3).

(6) A withdrawal under subsection (5) ( b ) shall be made by either—

(i) a cheque drawn in favour of the auctioneer or house agent, or

(ii) a transfer to a bank account (not being a client account) in the name of the auctioneer or house agent.

(7) Where an auctioneer or house agent withdraws money from a client account—

( a ) unless the withdrawal is being made by a cheque drawn in favour of a client, the auctioneer or house agent shall endorse on the cheque, withdrawal docket or draft requisition form the words "Fees in respect of" or the words "Outlay in respect of" or (where a payment is being made to a third party) the words "On behalf of" or (in any case) such other words as will explain the nature of the withdrawal, followed in every case by the name of the client;

( b ) he shall preserve the cheque or draft when returned by the bank for as long as he is required by section 4 to preserve the corresponding account.

(8) ( a ) Money withdrawn from a client account for or in respect of a client shall not exceed the total of the moneys held for the time being in that account on account of that client.

( b ) Money withdrawn from a client account for or towards reimbursement of money paid to a client by the auctioneer or house agent out of his own funds shall not exceed the amount paid to the auctioneer or house agent in respect of the corresponding transaction on behalf of that client and properly available in the client account for the purposes of such reimbursement.

(9) ( a ) If it appears to the Minister for Justice that the provisions of this section are inadequate to prevent the negligent or fraudulent handling of money for a client or are otherwise insufficient to protect the interests of clients and that other provisions (either in substitution for or in addition to the existing provisions or any of them) governing the payment of money into and the withdrawal of money from client accounts would be in the public interest, he may make regulations incorporating such other provisions.

( b ) Regulations under paragraph (a) may provide that, in circumstances specified in the regulations, being circumstances in which an auctioneer or house agent is required by or under this section to pay money into a client account, the auctioneer or house agent shall either—

(i) pay the money into an interest bearing client account and pay the interest to the client or other person to whom the money belongs, or

(ii) pay to the client or other person to whom the money belongs the sum equivalent to the interest that would have been earned if the money had been paid into such an account.

( c ) Regulations under this subsection shall not come into operation until a period of not less than one month has elapsed from the date on which they were made.

( d ) Every regulation made under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next subsequent twenty-one days on which the House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to anything previously done thereunder.

(10) For the purposes of subsections (1) to (4) references to money for a client include references to money paid to an auctioneer or house agent, being all or part of the purchase-price of property sold by him for a client or of the rent or other return in respect of property let by him for a client or being a payment otherwise intended for a client, where the auctioneer or house agent, in anticipation of the receipt of such money, has out of his own funds already paid the client.

6.—Where an auctioneer or house agent keeps a client account, neither the State nor any person shall have or obtain any recourse or right against moneys standing to the credit of that account in respect of a claim or right against the auctioneer or house agent until all proper claims of his clients against those moneys have been fully satisfied.

7.—(1) ( a ) Where an auctioneer or house agent is adjudicated bankrupt or where, being an arranging debtor, he vests his estate in the Official Assignee for realisation and distribution amongst his creditors, then, notwithstanding anything contained in section 6 or in any other enactment, there shall vest in the Official Assignee the sum to the credit of every client account kept by that auctioneer or house agent.

( b ) Where an auctioneer or house agent files a petition for arrangement but does not vest his estate in the Official Assignee, the creditors who are clients, or a section thereof (being at least three-fifths in number and value of those who, as clients, have proved debts to the amount of £20) may apply to a judge of the High Court for the time being exercising jurisdiction in bankrupt matters for an order vesting in the Official Assignee the sum to the credit of every client account kept by the auctioneer or house agent, and the judge may, if he thinks it proper to do so and the Official Assignee consents, make such an order, which shall have effect accordingly.

(2) Upon a vesting under subsection (1) (whether by virtue of paragraph (a) thereof or of an order under paragraph (b)thereof) in the Official Assignee—

( a ) the rights of creditors against the deposit maintained in the High Court shall vest in him and no order shall thereafter be made under section 11 (3) (b) in relation to the deposit;

( b ) he shall notify the Accountant of the vesting;

( c ) notwithstanding that an order in respect of any such client account may have been under section 11 (4), a banking company shall be entitled to pay over to him the sum to the credit of that account and shall pay over that sum to him upon demand by him;

( d ) he shall proceed to administer the client account or accounts for the benefit of the clients and the law of bankruptcy (including this Act) shall apply to such administration.

(3) The administration under subsection (2) of a client account by the Official Assignee shall for all purposes be deemed to be business assigned to the Office of the Official Assignee in Bankruptcy and transacted therein.

8.—(1) Where—

( a ) an auctioneer or house agent is adjudicated bankrupt, files a petition for arrangement, executes a deed of arrangement (within the meaning of section 4 of the Deeds of Arrangement Act, 1887) or dies insolvent, or

( b ) a company licensed as an auctioneer or house agent is insolvent and being wound up,

the Official Assignee (in a case where section 7 applies), the liquidator (in the case of an insolvent company) or any interested person (in any other case) may apply to the High Court by motion for an order under subsection (2).

(2) ( a ) The High Court, on application made to it under subsection (1), may make an order directing that—

(i) the costs, fees and expenses incurred by or payable to the Official Assignee in connection with the client account or (as may be appropriate) such costs and expenses in connection with the client account of the liquidator or other interested person as the court may allow, and

(ii) the amount of any deficiency in a client account,

shall, to such extent as the money available allows, be paid or made good by the Accountant either out of the deposit maintained in the High Court under the Principal Act, or, in a case where the deposit consists of a guarantee bond, from money made available by the assurance company concerned on foot of the bond; and, for the purpose of enabling the Accountant to comply with such direction, the order or a further order may direct, in a case where the deposit consists of securities, the sale by the Accountant of such securities (or of as much thereof as may be necessary) and, in a case where the deposit consists of a guarantee bond and notice of the application has been served on the assurance company concerned, the payment by the assurance company of the amount of the bond (or of as much thereof as may be necessary) : provided, however, that such order shall have effect subject to the provisions of any order previously made in relation to the deposit under section 11 (3) (b) unless the High Court directs otherwise.

( b ) Where there is a deficiency in more than one client account, the amount available from the deposit towards making good the deficiencies may be paid over under paragraph (a) without apportionment between the client accounts.

( c ) The High Court, when making an order under this subsection directing the sale of securities, may in the same order direct the sale of all such securities maintained as a deposit in the High Court by the auctioneer or house agent and the transfer to the Official Assignee, for the benefit of the ordinary creditors, of any surplus that may remain after the payment of any costs, fees and expenses and the making good of any deficiency in a client account.

( d ) The provisions of section 15 (3) of the Principal Act shall apply to an order under this subsection.

(3) Where—

( a ) (i) an auctioneer or house agent is adjudicated bankrupt, files a petition for arrangement, executes a deed of arrangement (within the meaning of section 4 of the Deeds of Arrangement Act, 1887) or dies insolvent, or

(ii) a company licensed as an auctioneer or house agent is insolvent and being wound up,

and

( b ) there is, notwithstanding the addition of the sum paid over under subsection (2), a deficiency in the client account or accounts,

then, notwithstanding any rule of law to the contrary, the sum to the credit of the said client account or, where the auctioneer or house agent has kept two or more client accounts, the total of the sums to the credit of those accounts, shall (after the addition thereto of the sum paid over under subsection (2)) be divisible proportionately amongst the clients of the auctioneer or house agent according to the respective sum received by the auctioneer or house agent in the course of his business on behalf of his clients and remaining due by him to them.

(4) A person, other than the Official Assignee, who is entitled and proposes to apply to the High Court under subsection (1) may before such application and by motion ex parte apply to the Court for an order prohibiting the payment of any money out of the deposit or, in a case where the deposit consists of a guarantee bond, from money made available by the assurance company concerned on foot of the bond, pending the hearing of the application under subsection (1), and the Court may, if it thinks fit, order accordingly.

(5) For the purposes of this section, in a case where a refund of a deposit is due the amount due shall be deemed to have been received by the auctioneer or house agent in the course of his business on behalf of the person who made the deposit: provided, however that this section shall not so operate as to deprive such a person of any right to require the contract of sale or letting to be duly completed.

9.—Nothing in this Act shall so operate as to deprive an auctioneer or house agent of any recourse or right (whether by way of lien, set-off, counter-claim, charge or otherwise) against moneys standing to the credit of a client account.

10.—(1) A banking company shall not, in connection with any transaction on an account of an auctioneer or house agent kept with them or with another banking company, incur a liability or be under an obligation to make inquiry or be deemed to have knowledge of a right to money paid or credited to the account which they would not incur, be under or be deemed to have in the case of an account kept by a person entitled absolutely to the money paid or credited thereto.

(2) Nothing in subsection (1) shall relieve a banking company from any liability or obligation which they would be under apart from this Act.

(3) Notwithstanding subsection (1), a banking company which keeps an account of an auctioneer or house agent for moneys of clients, shall not, in respect of a liability of the auctioneer or house agent to the banking company, not being a liability in connection with that account, have or obtain any recourse or right (whether by way of lien, set-off, counter-claim, charge or otherwise) against moneys standing to the credit of that account.

(4) Nothing in subsection (3) shall deprive a banking company of a right existing at the commencement of this section in respect of moneys previously deposited with that banking company.

11.—(1) Whenever a person (in this section referred to as the plaintiff) has—

( a ) obtained in any proceedings a judgment, order or decree, or

( b ) instituted proceedings,

against any other person (in this section referred to as the defendant) for (or, in the case of proceedings instituted, involving a claim for) payment of money in discharge of a liability incurred or alleged to have been incurred by the defendant as an auctioneer or house agent in relation to the receipt or payment of money or the safe custody of property, the plaintiff or any client of the defendant may by motion ex parte apply to the High Court for an order under subsection (3).

(2) ( a ) A person who may make an application under subsection (1) shall, on satisfying the registrar or clerk, as the case may be, of the court in which the judgment, order or decree mentioned in that subsection was obtained or the proceedings mentioned in that subsection were instituted that he proposes to make the application, be entitled to obtain a certificate signed by the registrar or clerk that a judgment, order or decree as aforesaid has been obtained or that proceedings as aforesaid have been instituted, as the case may be, against the defendant.

( b ) A certificate under paragraph (a) shall be evidence of the facts stated therein.

(3) Where an application is made under subsection (1), the following provisions shall have effect, namely:

( a ) in any case, the Court may by order direct that the deposit maintained in the Court under the Principal Act be not released during such period as to the Court may seem proper;

( b ) in a case where the application is made by a plaintiff who has obtained a judgment, order or decree and it appears to the Court, after such enquiry as it deems appropriate, either—

(i) that it is unlikely that further claims will be made against the deposit in respect of sums then owed by the defendant, or

(ii) that, if such claims are made, the deposit is sufficient to meet them in full,

the Court may by order direct that the sum specified in the judgment, order or decree (as the case may be), with or without the costs of the application, shall be paid to the plaintiff out of the deposit or, if the deposit consists of a guarantee bond and notice of the proceedings or of the intention to institute the proceedings has been served before the hearing on the assurance company concerned, shall be paid to the Accountant on behalf of the plaintiff

(4) Where an order has been made under subsection (3) (a) the Court may also make an order directing either—

( a ) that no banking company shall, except on such conditions or in such circumstances as may be specified in the order, make any payment out of any banking account in the name of the defendant, or

( b ) that a specified banking company shall not, except on such conditions or in such circumstances as may be specified in the order, make any payment out of any banking account or out of a specified banking account or type of account kept by such company in the name of the defendant.

(5) Where—

( a ) an order has been made under subsection (3) ( a ) on the application of a plaintiff who has obtained judgment, order or decree, or

( b ) an order has been made under subsection (4),

the defendant shall, for the purposes of the law of bankruptcy, be deemed to have committed an act of bankruptcy on the date of the making of the order or, if the defendant is a company, shall, for the purposes of the law relating to companies, be deemed to be unable to pay its debts.

(6) ( a ) In addition to or in lieu of an order under subsection (4), the Court, notwithstanding anything contained in the law of bankruptcy or the law relating to companies, may, of its own motion and after giving to the defendant, and to any person to whom it considers it reasonable to give notice, such notice as it considers reasonable, by order adjudicate him bankrupt or, if the defendant is a company, make an order for its winding up and for the appointment of the Official Assignee as liquidator.

( b ) Where the Official Assignee is appointed liquidator under paragraph (a)—

(i) the provisions of sections 228 (a) and 228 (d) of the Companies Act, 1963 , shall not apply to him,

(ii) notwithstanding anything contained in section 6 or in any other enactment, there shall vest in him the sum to the credit of every client account kept by the company and the provisions of section 7 (2) shall apply as if the vesting were under section 7 (1),

(iii) the exercise of his powers and the performance of his duties as liquidator (including the administration of a client account) shall for all purposes be deemed to be business assigned to the Office of the Official Assignee in Bankruptcy and transacted therein.

(7) Where a defendant is adjudicated bankrupt under this section, the law of bankruptcy (including this Act) shall apply in the same way as if the defendant had been adjudicated bankrupt on a petition of bankruptcy under that law and as if for any reference in that law to the presentation or filing of a petition of bankruptcy there were substituted a reference to the making of the order of adjudication under this section.

(8) Where, in a case where the defendant is a company, a winding up order is made under this section, the law relating to companies (including this Act) shall apply in the same way as if the order had been made on a winding up petition under that law and as if for any reference in that law to the presentation of the winding up petition there were substituted a reference to the making of the winding up order under this section.

(9) An order under subsection (3) ( a ) or under subsection (4) may be revoked or varied by the High Court.

(10) The whole or any part of proceedings under this section may be heard in chambers.

(11) Rules of the Superior Courts may provide for adaptation of the law of bankruptcy, the law relating to companies and any procedure to such extent as may be necessary to implement this section.

(12) The reference in section 15 (3) of the Principal Act to an order under that section shall be construed as a reference to an order under subsection (3) (b) of this section.

(13) Sections 15 (1) and 15 (2) of the Principal Act are hereby repealed.

12.—Section 12 of the Principal Act, which relates to the grant of certificates of qualification, is hereby amended—

(i) by the insertion in subsection (1) after "subject to" of "compliance by the applicant with the provisions of subsection (3) of this section and to", and

(ii) by the insertion after subsection (2) of the following subsections:

"(3) ( a ) An applicant for a certificate of qualification who has carried on the business of auctioneer or the business of house agent at any time in the period of twelve months ending six months before the date of the application (in this subsection referred to as the current application) shall furnish to the District Justice at the hearing of the current application a certificate signed by an accountant stating that he has examined the accounts of the applicant for such period as is specified in the certificate (being a period beginning, in the case of an applicant who has not previously furnished such a certificate, on the day of commencement of business or such other day as the District Justice may for special reasons allow, and, in any other case, on a day not later than the day immediately following the end of the period to which the last such certificate furnished by the applicant, or a certificate of the kind mentioned in subsection (4) (b) of this section, relates, and, in all cases, ending on a day not earlier than six months before the current application) and that the applicant has complied with the provisions of the Auctioneers and House Agents Act, 1967 , relating to the keeping of accounts and to the opening and keeping of client accounts.

( b ) For the purposes of this subsection, business carried on before the day of the coming into operation of the said provisions shall be disregarded and where business has been so carried on that day shall be regarded as the day of commencement of business.

( c ) Where the applicant has not carried on business throughout the period specified in paragraph (a) as the period to which the certificate should relate, the provisions of that paragraph shall be sufficiently complied with if the certificate relates to part of the period (being the part during which business was carried on) and it is proved to the satisfaction of the District Justice that business was not carried on except during that part of the period.

( d ) In this subsection references to the business of auctioneer and to the business of house agent shall be construed as referring only to business to carry on which the applicant is required to be licensed under this Act.

(4) ( a ) The District Justice may, at his discretion, grant an application for a certificate of qualification notwithstanding that, because of failure to comply with the provisions of the Auctioneers and House Agents Act, 1967 , relating to the keeping of accounts and to the opening and keeping of client accounts, the applicant is unable to furnish the certificate required by subsection (3) of this section, provided that the applicant proves to the satisfaction of the District Justice—

(i) that he is, at the time of the application, complying with the said provisions and has taken all necessary steps to comply with them for the future;

(ii) that no client has suffered or is liable to suffer loss in respect of any transactions during the period when the said provisions were not complied with; and

(iii) that, in relation to the business of auctioneer or the business of house agent (as the case may be) and any other business in which he may be engaged, he is solvent.

( b ) Proof of the matters mentioned in subparagraphs (i) to (iii) of paragraph (a) shall in all cases include a certificate signed by an accountant in relation to the said matters and the District Justice may require additional evidence (including oral evidence by the accountant) to be adduced.

( c ) A certificate for the purposes of paragraph (b)shall not be deemed to be insufficient by reason only of the fact that—

(i) an interval has elapsed between the issue of the certificate and the time of the application: provided that the interval does not exceed one month, or

(ii) the certificate, in so far as it relates to paragraph (a) (ii), indicates only that the accountant has no reason to believe that a client has suffered or is liable to suffer loss,

or by reason of both such facts

(5) ( a ) The Minister may by order make such modification as he may think necessary in relation to the period to which the certificate signed by an accountant and mentioned in subsection (3) of this section shall relate, but any such modification shall not relieve an applicant from the requirement (imposed in certain cases by the said subsection (3)) to furnish a certificate relating to a period beginning on a day not later than the day immediately following the end of the period to which the last such certificate furnished by the applicant, or a certificate of the kind mentioned in subsection (4) (b) of this section, relates.

( b ) The Minister may by order revoke or amend an order under this subsection.

(6) ( a ) The Minister may make regulations prescribing—

(i) the nature and extent of the examination to be made by an accountant of the books and accounts of an auctioneer or house agent and of any other relevant documents, with a view to the giving of a certificate for the purposes of subsection (3) or a certificate for the purposes of subsection (4) ( b ), and

(ii) the form of such certificate,

and different regulations may be made in respect of the two types of certificate mentioned in subparagraph (i).

( b ) Notwithstanding that an auctioneer or house agent has, during the period to be covered by a certificate required for the purposes of subsection (3), complied with the relevant provisions of the Auctioneers and House Agents Act, 1967 , an accountant shall not issue a certificate for the purposes of that subsection if at the time of his examination matters come or have come to his notice from which it appears to him that the auctioneer or house agent is not solvent.

(7) Any person who acts as an accountant for the purposes of this section when not qualified in manner the indicated in paragraph (a) or paragraph (b) (as the case may be) of the following subsection shall be guilty of an offence and on summary conviction thereof shall be liable to a fine not exceeding £100.

(8) In this section 'accountant' means—

( a ) where the auctioneer or house agent is a company, a person who is qualified for appointment as auditor of that company,

( b ) in any other case, a person (not being a body corporate or the applicant or a partner or employee of the applicant) who fulfils either—

(i) the condition mentioned in paragraph (a), or

(ii) the condition mentioned in paragraph (b),

of section 162 (1) of the Companies Act, 1963 , for appointment as auditor of a company and is not disqualified under section 162 (2) of that Act for being so appointed."

13.—This Act, other than sections 1 to 4, section 11, this section and section 14, shall not apply or have effect in relation to the auctioning in a public market of vegetables, potatoes, fruit, flowers, poultry, eggs or other primary products (not including horses, cattle, sheep or pigs) of agriculture or horticulture.

14.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Auctioneers and House Agents Act, 1967 .

(2) The Principal Act and this Act may be cited together as the Auctioneers and House Agents Acts, 1947 and 1967, and shall be construed together as one.

(3) Sections 4 to 12 shall come into operation on the expiration of the period of two months beginning on the day of the passing of this Act.