London Government Act 1963

39 After section 287 there shall be inserted the following sections:—

“287A Service of notices by local authority.

(1) Any document to which this section applies, being a document required or authorised to be served on any person, shall be deemed to be duly served—

(a) where the person to be served is a company, if the document is addressed to the secretary of the company at its registered office or at its principal office or place of business, and is either—

(i) sent by post, or

(ii) delivered at the registered office, or at the principal office or place of business, of the company;

(b) where the person to be served is a partnership, if the document is addressed to the partnership at its principal place of business, identifying it by the name or style under which its business is carried on, and is either—

(i) sent by post, or

(ii) delivered at the said place of business ;

(c) where the person to be served is a public body, or a corporation, society or other body, if the document is addressed to the clerk, secretary, treasurer or other head officer of that body, corporation or society at its principal office, and is either—

(i) sent by post, or

(ii) delivered at that office ;

(d) in any other case, if the document is addressed to the person to be served, and is either sent to him by post or delivered at his residence or place of business.

(2) Any document to which this section applies, being a document required or authorised to be served on the owner or occupier of any premises, may be addressed “the owner” or “the occupier,” as the case may be, of those premises (naming them) without further name or description, and shall be deemed to be duly served—

(a) if the document so addressed is sent or delivered in accordance with paragraph (d) of the foregoing subsection; or

(b) if the document so addressed, or a copy thereof so addressed, is delivered to some person on the premises or, where there is no person on the premises to whom it can be delivered, is affixed to some conspicuous part of the premises.

(3) Where a document to which this section applies is served on a partnership in accordance with this section, the document shall be deemed to be served on each partner.

(4) For the purpose of enabling any document to be served on the owner of any premises, the local authority may by notice in writing require the occupier of the premises to state the name and address of the owner thereof, and if the occupier refuses or wilfully neglects to do so, or wilfully misstates the name and address of the owner, he shall, unless in the case of a refusal he shows cause to the satisfaction of the court for his refusal, be liable on summary conviction in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding five pounds.

(5) This section applies to any notice, order or other document which is required or authorised by any enactment or any instrument made under an enactment to be served by or on behalf of a local authority, or by an officer of a local authority, not being a document to the service of which the provisions of some enactment other than this section or some instrument made under an enactment are applicable.

(6) For the purposes of this section, a notice, order or other document shall be deemed to be a notice, order or other document which is required or authorised to be served on a person if it is required or authorised to be notified, given or transmitted, or (in the case of a demand) if it is required or authorised to be made, to that person, and in this section the expressions ' served ' and ' service ' shall be construed accordingly.

287B Authentication of documents.

(1) Any notice, order or other document which a local authority are authorised or required by or under any enactment (including any enactment in this Act) to give, make or issue may be signed on behalf of the authority by the clerk of the authority or by any other officer of the authority authorised by the authority in writing to sign documents of the particular kind or the particular document, as the case may be.

(2) Any document purporting to bear the signature of the clerk of the authority or of any officer stated therein to be duly authorised by the authority to sign such a document or the particular document, as the case may be, shall be deemed, until the contrary is proved, to have been duly given, made or issued by the authority of the local authority. In this subsection the word ' signature' includes a facsimile of a signature by whatever process reproduced.

(3) Where any enactment or instrument made under an enactment makes, in relation to any document or class of documents, provision with respect to the matters dealt with by one of the two foregoing subsections, that subsection shall not apply in relation to that document or class of documents.”