Ill 



BILL OP EXCHANGE. 



BILL OF EXCHANGE. 



For foreign bills, drawn- in sets of three or more, the scale is 



For every bill of each set, if the sum is 



& 



Not above 25 



Above 25 ami not above 50 



50 75 



75 100 



100 200 



200 



300 



400 



500 



750 

 1000 

 1500 

 2000 

 3000 

 4000 and upwards 



300 



400 



500 



750 



1000 



1500 



2000 



3000 



4000 



s. a. 





 

 003 

 

 008 

 1 

 1 4 

 1 

 026 

 034 

 5 

 6 

 10 

 13 4 

 15 









A bill altered in any material respect after it has been once issued is in 

 effect a new bill, and the existing stamp was exhausted by the un- 

 altered bill. No action can be maintained in any court of law or 

 equity upon a bill not having the proper stamp as well in denomination 

 as in value. 



A da.lt, though usual, is not essential to a bill, unless drawn for a 

 mim under 51. When no date is given, the bill is presumed to be dated 

 when drawn. 



A bill in which no time of payment is expressed is construed to be 

 lyable on demand. 



Bills, as has been said, are ordinarily made payable to some third 

 person, or to the drawer himself. They may, however, be expressly 

 made payable to bearer, and when a fictitious name is given as payee, 

 the instrument is in legal effect payable to bearer, as against the con- 

 cocters of the instrument and in favour of an innocent bond fide holder. 

 Bxit certainty as to the person to whom it is payable is essential to the 

 validity of the bill, and such a bill as is payable to the secretary for the 

 tim< being of a specified society is void. It must be observed that the 

 inserting a fictitious name as payee and indorsing the bill with that 

 name is a forgery, and punishable as such. 



The words " or order" give to the bill its character of negotiability, 

 I >ut the general operation of this expression may be restricted by the 

 payee or any other indorser, who, by the following simple form of 

 indorsement, " Pay A. B. (or A. B. or order) to my use," may cast upon 

 the next immediate holder the responsibility of seeing that the contents 

 are duly applied. 



The turn should be clearly expressed in the bill, and in such way as 

 to render forgery difficult. But a blank draft or acceptance given to a 

 third person may be filled up by him with any sum which the stamp 

 will cover. 



" Value recfired " upon a bill signifies, in general, value received from 

 the payee, and the bill itself without these words imports so much. 

 A total want of consideration is ground of defence to an action upon the 

 bill as between immediate parties, but is not available as an answer to 

 the claim of a holder for value who has taken the security in the regular 

 course. 



An alteration in a bill in any material part, as in the date, sum, or 

 time when payable, will, independently of the stamp acts, render the 

 bill wholly invalid as against any party not consenting to the alteration, 

 and this although it be in the hands of an innocent holder. But an 

 alteration in a part not material, or made merely for the purpose of 

 correcting a mistake, in furtherance of the original intention of the 

 parties, though made after the bill is complete, will not invalidate it, 

 either as regards the stamp laws or otherwise. 



Of the deltiery of the bill to the payee. The delivery of a bill of 

 exchange in consideration of an antecedent debt suspends the right to 

 sue for that debt during the currency of the bill ; but if it be dis- 

 honoured at maturity, the original debt revives, and with it the legal 

 remedy, provided that no act be done by the holder to prejudice or 

 impair the claim of the drawer upon the acceptor. In like manner the 

 taking of a bill of exchange in payment suspends for the time the lien 

 of a seller upon goods sold and remaining in his possession ; but if the 

 bill be not paid when due, he is remitted to his right of retaining or 

 (topping the goods before they reach the buyer. 



Of the pretentment, acceptance, and non-acceptance of bill*. It is usual, 

 as already said, for the payee, or the first holder who conveniently can 

 do so, to present the bill to the drawee for acceptance ; and when a 

 bill is drawn payable at a certain time after sight, presentment for 

 acceptance is necessary in order to fix the date of payment, and ought 

 to be. made within a reasonable time. A foreign bill so drawn may 

 be circulated for a reasonable time before acceptance, and an inland 

 bill may also be put into circulation, though with less latitude as to 

 time ; but in either case, if the payee keep the bill in his possession for 

 a longer time than is reasonable, ho is guilty of lachet, and cannot 

 recover against the drawer. 



The presentment should in all cases be made during the usual hours 

 of business, and to the drawee himself or his agent, who is bound to 

 return an answer within twenty-four hours. 



The acceptance of any bill, whether foreign or inland, must by the 

 law of the United Kingdom be in writing on the bill, or if there be 



more than one part, on one of the parts of the bill, and signed by the 

 acceptor or some person duly authorised by him. 



An acceptance may be either absolute, conditional, partial, or 

 qualified. An absolute acceptance is an engagement to pay the bill 

 according to the tenor : a conditional acceptance may be to pay the 

 bill upon a contingency ; as that the drawee will pay when certain 

 goods shall be sold, or when certain funds shall come to his hands, or 

 the like, and in this case the acceptor is not bound until the fulfilment 

 of the condition. 



A bill may also be accepted partially, as to pay a sum short of that 

 for which the bill is drawn. In all cases of a conditional or partial 

 acceptance, the holder ought to give notice thereof to all parties whom 

 he intends to hold liable on default. 



An acceptance may also be qualified as to the time of payment or 

 the place of payment ; but in the case of inland bills a special accept- 

 ance as to the place of payment can only be made by the use of 

 restrictive words : as for instance, " Accepted payable at Coutts & Co., 

 and wot elseichere," 



If the drawee refuse or neglect to accept, any third party, after 

 protesting the non-acceptance by the drawee, may accept for the 

 honour of the drawer or any subsequent party, and such an acceptance 

 is called an acceptance supra protest, or fur honour. 



Upon the non-acceptance of a foreign bill, a protest is made by the 

 holder before a notary public ; and this protest by the custom of 

 merchants, is become so indispensable that neglect of it by the holder 

 will prevent him from recovering against the other parties to the bill. 

 Inland bills need not be protested, and in practice are merely noted 

 for non-acceptance, which itself also is a useless form. 



Notice of the non-acceptance must be given with all diligence to 

 every party to whom it is intended to resort ,for payment ; and the 

 want of such notice, or the delay of it beyond the time allowed by law 

 is a discharge of all parties, who have not received due notice, from 

 their liability. This is the law with regard to the drawer, on the 

 ground that ho is prejudiced by not receiving immediate information 

 of the default, so as to enable him to withdraw his effects from the 

 hands of the drawee ; and with regard to the indorsers, for a similar 

 reason, inasmuch as their interests may be affected by the delay. If 

 the drawer had in truth no effects in the hands of the drawee, or no 

 reasonable expectation that there would be effects in the drawee's 

 hand before the maturity of the bill, or no remedy over against some 

 other party to the bill, the omission to give the drawer notice con- 

 stitutes no objection to the right of action as against him. Generally, 

 to be quite safe, notice should be given within twenty-four hours after 

 the dishonour, and each party on receiving such notice is allowed the 

 same interval for communicating to those who precede him upon the 

 bill. But no more time is allowed for giving a large number of notices 

 than is allowed for one. And where the parties to receive it live at a 

 distance from the party who gives notice, it suffices to despatch it 

 within the time specified ; but if both parties live in the same town it 

 should be despatched so as to reach the other within that time. The 

 notice may in all cases be sent by the post, and it is sufficient to show 

 that the letter containing it was delivered into the post-office. 



The death, known insolvency, or even bankruptcy of the drawee, 

 affords no excuse, either at law or in equity, for a neglect to give due 

 notice of non-acceptance ; but any party may, by agreement, or by a 

 subsequent admission of his liability, dispense with or waive the 

 notice to which he is entitled; and where the residence of the 

 party is unknown, due diligence to discover it is all that the law 

 requires. 



Of the indorsement and transfer of bills, something has been already 

 said. No form has been prescribed by the law for the mode of in- 

 dorsement, and in general the mere signature of the party is sufficient. 

 After an indorsement in full, the holder can derive title only through 

 the special indorsee, whose signature therefore must appear upon the 

 bill. An indorsement is valid though made after the bill is become 

 due, but the holder in that case is entitled only to such advantages as 

 might have been claimed by the last indorsee before maturity, and is 

 liable to such counter claims as might have been set off against him. 



After payment of a part, the bill may be indorsed over for the 

 residue. Bills payable to bearer may be transferred by delivery only 

 without indorsement. An indorsement may be restricted by the 

 words before mentioned, " Pay A. B. to my use," or by any other ex- 

 pression clearly limiting the authority to assign. 



A bond fide holder for value is not affected by the want of title in 

 any previous indorser ; and nothing but mala fides can invalidate his 

 title, notwithstanding that the bill may have been lost or stolen from 

 the possession of a rightful owner. 



If a bill is not negotiable and has been lost or destroyed, the payee 

 may nevertheless recover at law against the acceptor or drawer. If a 

 negotiable bill has been lost or destroyed the rightful owner may offer 

 an indemnity and recover against the party liable either at law or in 

 equity ; but if the rightful owner wishing to enforce payment, refuses 

 to give an indemnity, the defendant may defeat the action at law by 

 setting up the loss or destruction of the bill, or he may compel the 

 other in equity to give him an indemnity and cast him in the costs of 

 the suit. 



Of the presentment for payment, <kc. The holder of a bill is bound to 

 present it to the drawee for payment at the time when due, when n 



