12.—(1) The seal of a credit union shall be used only under the authority of a resolution of the board of directors and shall be attested by the signatures of two directors of the credit union and the countersignature of the secretary for the time being.

(2) Any officer of a credit union, or any other person acting on a credit union's behalf, who—

(a) uses any seal purporting to be a seal of the credit union which does not have the credit union's registered name engraved on it in legible characters, or

(b) issues or authorises the issue of any document such as is mentioned in paragraph (a), paragraph (b) or paragraph (d) of subsection (6) of section 10 in which that name is not set out in legible characters, or

(c) signs or authorises to be signed on behalf of the credit union any document such as is mentioned in paragraph (c) of that subsection in which that name is not so set out,

shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), any person, other than a credit union, who—

(a) uses in reference to himself, a name, title or descriptive expression containing the words “credit union ” or “comhar creidmheasa” or any cognate term or any derivative of those words, or

(b) represents himself as being a credit union,

shall be guilty of an offence.

(4) Subsection (3) does not apply to—

(a) the use by an officer of a title or descriptive expression indicating his office or post with the credit union; or

(b) the use of the term “Irish League of Credit Unions” by the unincorporated association having that name immediately before the passing of this Act; or

(c) the use with reference to an association or group of credit unions of a name which has been approved in writing by the F30[Bank].