The Director—Division of District Administration and Others v The Sacred Heart Mission (New Britain) Property Trust (In Re Invura) [1974] PNGLR 312

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Judge: Kelly J
• Judgment Date: 02 October 1970
• Court: Supreme Court
• Citation: [1974] PNGLR 312
• Year: 1974
• Judgement Number: No594

Full Title: The Director—Division of District Administration and Others v The Sacred Heart Mission (New Britain) Property Trust (In Re Invura) [1974] PNGLR 312

Supreme Court: Kelly J

Judgment Delivered: 2 October 1970

1 Land Titles Commission—East New Britain Province; Statutory interpretation

2 Motion extending time for appeal denied; time limit in original law expired; new law did not clearly show intent for retrospective effect of discretion re time limits

STATUTES—Operation and effect—Retrospective operation—Amending legislation—Intention of legislature—Amending provision merely procedural—No retrospective operation where time limitations under prior enactment expired—Land Titles Commission Act 1962–1970 s38(1AA).

APPEAL—Extension of time—Amending legislation—Retrospective operation where time limitation under prior enactment expired—Land Titles Commission Act 1962–1970 s38(1AA).

A statute is retrospective which takes away or impairs any vested right acquired under existing laws, or creates a new obligation or imposes a new duty, or attaches a new disability in respect of transactions or considerations already passed. A statute is not to be given retrospective operation unless there is perfectly clear language showing the intention of Parliament that it shall have a retrospective operation.

Croxford v Universal Insurance Company Limited [1936] 2 KB 253 at 281 followed.

Held:

S38(1AA) of the Land Titles Commission Act 1962–1970 which is in the following terms:

"Notwithstanding anything in the preceding provisions of this section, a Judge may, where he thinks it desirable in the interests of justice to do so, extend the time for appeal, but no such extension shall be granted after the Registrar of Titles has, in pursuance of the decision of the Commission, made any entry in the Register kept by him or issued any documents of title."

(1) falls within the class of provisions which affects only the existing practice and procedure of the courts for enforcing substantive rights.

Maxwell v Murphy (1956–57) 96 CLR 261 at 277 referred to.

(2) is not framed in language clearly showing the intention of the legislature that the Act should have retrospective operation.

(3) and accordingly does not operate to enable the Court to extend time for appeal when the time limited by the prior enactment has already expired.

Summons.

This was an application by originating summons pursuant to s38(1AA) of the Land Titles Commission Act 1962–1970 taken out by the Director, Division of District Administration, Department of the Administration and Akun, Topal and Tebuar on behalf of themselves and the people of Mualim Village and Anton of Mioko Pal Pal Village, and under the provisions of s3 of the Land Titles...