84.— (1) Where a person retains possession of documents and gives to another person in writing—

[CA 1881, s. 9]

(a) an acknowledgment of the right of that other to production of those documents and to delivery of copies of them (“the acknowledgment”),

(b) an undertaking for the safe custody of those documents (“the undertaking”),

the acknowledgment and the undertaking have the effect specified in this section.

(2) The obligations imposed by an acknowledgment are to—

(a) produce the documents or any of them at all reasonable times for the purpose of inspection and of comparison with abstracts or copies of the documents, by the person entitled to request production or by any person authorised in writing by that person,

(b) produce the documents or any of them in court or any other place where, or on any occasion when, production may properly be required for proving or supporting the title or claim of the person entitled to request production, or for any other purpose relating to that title or claim,

(c) deliver to the person entitled to request them such copies or abstracts, attested or unattested, of or from the documents or any of them.

(3) The obligation imposed by an undertaking is to keep the documents complete, safe, uncancelled and undefaced.

(4) The obligations shall be performed from time to time—

(a) in the case of the acknowledgment, at the request in writing of,

(b) in the case of the undertaking, in favour of,

the person to whom it is given, or any person, not being a tenant, who has or who claims any estate, interest or right through or under that person or who otherwise becomes through or under that person interested in or affected by the terms of the document to which the acknowledgment or undertaking relates.

(5) The acknowledgment and undertaking bind the documents to which they relate in the possession or under the control of the person who retains them and every other person having possession or control of them from time to time but they bind each such individual possessor or person as long only as that person has possession or control.

(6) Each person having possession or control of such documents is bound specifically to perform the obligations imposed by this section, unless prevented from doing so by fire or other inevitable accident, but all costs and expenses of or incidental to specific performance of the acknowledgment shall be paid by the person requesting performance.

(7) The acknowledgment does not confer any right to damages for loss or destruction of, or injury to, the documents to which it relates, arising from whatever cause.

(8) Any person claiming to be entitled to the benefit of an undertaking may apply to the court for damages for any loss or destruction of, or injury to, the documents or any of them to which it relates.

(9) Upon such application the court may direct such inquiries and make such order as to costs or other matters as it thinks fit.

(10) An acknowledgment or undertaking under this section satisfies any liability to give a covenant for production and delivery of copies of or extracts from documents or for safe custody of documents.

(11) The rights conferred by an acknowledgment or undertaking under this section are in addition to all such other rights relating to production, inspection or obtaining copies of documents as are not satisfied by the giving of the acknowledgment or undertaking.

(12) This section—

(a) has effect where an acknowledgment or undertaking is given by a person to that same person in different capacities in the same way as where it is given by one person to another,

(b) takes effect subject to the terms of the acknowledgment or undertaking.