THERE were changes to the Land Title Act 1994 (“LTA”) and Land Act 1994 (“LA”) recently increasing verification of identity (“VOI”) requirements for the witnessing of signatures on instruments and documents.

The changes came into effect on September 30, 2019.

The specific witnessing requirements are in section 162 of the LTA and 311 of the LA, including VOI records now required to be retained by the witness for seven years.

The Registrar may call on the witness to produce the records.

The word “instrument” is defined in Schedule 2 of the LTA and the word “document” is defined in Schedule 6 of the LA.

They have the same meaning and include a request, application or other document that deals with a lot and may be registered under either Act.

The Titles Registry publishes the “Land Titles Practice Manual” setting out the practices and procedures to be followed when preparing and lodging Titles Registry forms.

Part 61 of the Manual has been updated to assist in understanding how to comply with the new VOI requirements.

If you are a solicitor or other qualified witness make sure you are complying with the new VOI requirements.

If you need a document or instrument witnessed that attracts these VOI requirements you will be asked to prove who you are and that you are in fact entitled to sign.

You will need to prove it to the satisfaction of the witness. Be prepared.

Until next week – Keep it Legal!

Katie Caldow
kcaldow@walkerpender.com.au

* The legal information in this article is of a general nature only and not intended to be legal advice to rely upon.