The Permanent Order Book at the Victorian Land Titles Office has closed.
Historically, the purpose of the Permanent Order Book was to assist parties lodging a significant volume of instruments executed under a Power of Attorney (POA). It provided for a copy of a POA to be deposited with the Registrar which was then recorded in the Permanent Order Book. This meant that it was unnecessary for a certified copy POA to be provided as supporting evidence when the POA was used to execute an instrument.
With the vast majority of Victorian conveyancing now being transacted electronically, the Permanent Order Book has become obsolete. Parties to a transaction now typically satisfy themselves as to the authority of the other parties to execute transaction documents directly through their legal representatives in the transaction.
From 1 July 2023:
- reference to powers of attorney recorded in the Permanent Order Book on instruments lodged for registration will not be accepted, and
- a certified copy of the POA will need to be produced to support lodgement of paper instruments which are signed under power of attorney.
If you need assistance reviewing and amending your execution clauses to eliminate references to powers of attorney recorded in the Permanent Order Book, contact Hunt & Hunt’s experienced Property team.
Article by Andrew Ham and Cathy Stewart with Harriet Whiteley.
