Page:Halsbury Laws of England v1 1907.pdf/866

 — Bankers and Banking.

644 Sect.



21.

Banker's Obligation to Secrecy.

consequence, unless such answers were put into writing, and signed by the banker himself, signature by an agent not being suffiWhere the banker can be held responsible, it is immacient (h). terial whether he gave the information direct to the person acting on it, or to another banker in order that it might be communicated to

him

(^).

Sect. 22. Copies of entries are evidence.

Conditions of admissibility.

Company in compulso]'y liquidation.

Production

etc,

of Bankers' Books.

1298. A banker may be ordered to produce any books and documents in his possession relating to the account of a person known or suspected to have in his |)ossession any of the estate or effects of a company which is being wound up under an order of the Court, or who is supposed to be indebted to such a company and the fact that such person's account has been closed is immaterial

of originals.

Production, Inspection

1297. In all legal proceedings, a copy of any entry in a banker's books (k), that is to say, in the ledgers, day-books, cash-books, account books, and all other books used in the ordinary business of a bank {I), is received as prima facie evidence {m) not only of such entry, but of the matters, transactions, and accounts therein recorded {n), provided that it is first proved by a partner or officer of the bank either orally or by affidavit that the book was at the time of making the entry one of the ordinary books of the bank, that the entry was made in the usual and^ ordinary course of business, and that the book is in the custody or control of the bank(o) or of the successors to the bank in whose custody or control it was when the entry was made {p). It must also be proved in the same manner that the copy has been examined with the original and is correct {q).

{r).

1299. Where the bank is a party to the litigation, the bank can be made to produce the books under the ordinary subpoena duces tecum ; but no banker or officer of a bank, in any legal proceedings to which the bank is not a party, is compellable to produce any book the contents of which can be proved as above, or to appear still

(/i) Statute of Frauds Amendment Act, 1829 (9 Geo. 4, c. 14), s. 6 i:iwift v. Jeivshury (1874), L. R. 9 Q. B. 301 ; Williams v. Mason (1873) 28 L. T. 232. banking company cannot be held responsible, as a company cannot sign {Hirst T. West Riding Union Banking Co., [1901] 2 K. B. 560), but the agent signing is personally responsible {Swift v. Jewsbury, supra). (i) Hosegood v. Bull (1876), 36 L. T. 617. {k) Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1879 (42 Vict. c. 11, s. 3). The expression " used in the ordinary business " does not mean (1) Ibid., s. 9. that the books must be in use every day it is sufficient if the banker keeps a book to refer to if necessary {Asylum for Idiots v. Handysides (1906), 22 T. L. E.

A



573).

(m) The Act makes copies of such entries evidence against any one ; thus the entries in a defendant's bankers' books are made evidence against the plaintiff

{Harding

v.

Williams (1880) 14 Ch. D. 197). Books Evidence Act, 1879 (42 Yict.

(n) Bankers' (o) Ibid.,

s.

c.

11),

s.

3.

4.

Asylum for Idiots v. Handysides, supra, Bankers' Books Evidence Act, 1879 (42 Vict. c. 11), s. 5. Companies Act, 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c. 89), s. 115 ; Ee Contract Corporation, Druitt's Case (1872), L. R. 14 Eq. 6. (p) (q) (r)