$37.

will have a right of recourse against all prior indorsers, although the person who reindorses has no claim against the indorsers subsequent to his first indorsement, or to whom he himself is ultimately liable in recourse. Frustra petis quod mox restituturus es. If a person to whom a bill is negotiated back, before negotiating the bill, cancels all indorsements subsequent to his own, a subsequent holder has no claim of recourse against the indorser, whose signatures are thus cancelled. An acceptor cannot reissue a bill of which he is the holder at or after maturity, for it is then discharged, vide § 61; nor can a drawer or indorser who is the party accommodated in an accommodation bill, which he has paid in due course, vide § 59 (3). A drawer also cannot reissue a bill payable to a third party, which he has paid, vide § 59 (2). If the bill is cancelled, and the cancellation is apparent thereon, vide § 63, or if it is materially altered without the assent of all parties liable thereon, vide § 64, or if the holder has, on or after maturity, renounced in writing unconditionally his rights against the acceptor, vide § 62, it cannot be reissued.

Rights of the holder.

38. The rights and powers of the holder of a bill are as follows (a)

(1.) He may sue on the bill in his own name (b):
(2.) Where he is a holder in due course, he holds

the bill free from any defect of title of prior
parties, as well as from mere personal defences
available to prior parties among themselves, and
may enforce payment against all parties liable on
the bill:

(3.) Where his title is defective (a) if he negotiates

the bill to a holder in due course, that holder obtains a good and complete title to the bill, and (b) if he obtains payment of the bill the person

38,

who pays him in due course gets a valid discharge for the bill.

(a.) The person in possession of a bill may be :

Such a

(1.) A holder in due course, as defined in § 29. holder has right to all the contracts on the bill-viz., that of the drawer, vide § 55 (1), of the acceptor, vide § 54, and of all prior indorsers, vide § 55 (2). He takes these contracts free from any defence not appearing on the face of the bill, and from any defect of title of his indorser, vide § 29 (3). He is not liable to the defence that a signature on a blank bill stamp has not been filled up as a complete bill within a reasonable time, and strictly in accordance with the authority given, vide § 20. Delivery of a bill by prior parties is conclusively presumed in a question with him, vide § 21 (2). The drawer, acceptor, and prior indorsers are precluded from stating certain objections to his title, vide §§ 54, 55, and 88. An indorser per aval is liable in recourse to him, vide § 56. He may enforce a bill, which has been materially altered according to its original tenor, if the alteration is not apparent, vide § 64.

(2.) A holder for value, vide § 27. He can enforce an accommodation bill against a person whom he knew to be an accommodation party when he took the bill. If not a holder in due course, he is liable to all objections pleadable against a prior holder, except that the acceptor or other party sued has not received value, vide § 27 (2).

(3.) He may be a holder by negotiation from one of these holders, in which case, he has all the rights of the holder from whom he took the bill, unless he is a party to fraud or illegality affecting the bill, vide § 29 (2), § 27 (2).

(4.) He may be a holder with a defective title-e.g., a thief or a finder, or a person who has fraudulently or by violence obtained the bill. Such a holder has a title to transfer the bill or to discharge the drawee, but his title may be cut down, vide § 29 (2).

(5.) He

may derive his title from a person whose title is

H

§ 38.

When presentment for acceptance is necessary.

defective.

If he become a holder after maturity of the bill, his title is defective also, whether he knew of the defect or not. If he become a holder before the bill is overdue, his title is good, unless he had notice that the title of his transferor was defective, or did not take it for value, or in good faith.

(6.) He may be a forger, and neither has a good title himself, nor can confer one on a bona fide holder for value before maturity, vide § 24, with the exceptions stated in S$ 54, 55, and 88. He cannot give a valid discharge, vide § 59, for no one can be a holder of a bill whose title depends on a forged or unauthorised signature.

(7.) He may be a transferee for value without indorse

ment, and has such title as his transferor had in the bill, vide 31 (4).

(8.) He may be a bona fide holder for value, but subject to a condition. Such a holder, if the condition be proved, vide § 34, has right to the bill only if the condition be fulfilled, but he can give a valid discharge to the payer.

(b.) A holder may either bring an ordinary action or raise diligence on the bill, vide § 98.

General duties of the Holder.

39. (1.) Where a bill is payable after sight, presentment for acceptance is necessary in order to fix the maturity of the instrument (a).

(2.) Where a bill expressly stipulates that it shall be presented for acceptance, or where a bill is drawn payable elsewhere than at the residence or place of business of the drawee, it must be presented for acceptance before it can be presented for payment (b). (3.) In no other case is presentment for acceptance

necessary in order to render liable any party to the $39. bill (c).

(4.) Where the holder of a bill, drawn payable elsewhere than at the place of business or residence of the drawee (d), has not time, with the exercise of reasonable diligence (e), to present the bill for acceptance before presenting it for payment on the day that it falls due, the delay caused by presenting the bill for acceptance before presenting it for payment is excused, and does not discharge the drawer and indorsers.

(a.) When a bill payable after sight is presented for acceptance, the drawee ought to date his acceptance, but the want of the date does not affect the maturity of the bill. The holder may insert the true date, but if he inserts a wrong date in good faith and by mistake, or if the acceptance with a wrong date come into the hands of a holder in due course, the bill becomes payable at the date so inserted, vide § 12.

(b.) Presentment must be to the drawee or to some person authorised to accept or refuse acceptance on his behalf, and not at the place of payment. The stipulation in this subsection must be in writing on the bill.

(c.) The holder may, however, in his option present for acceptance, and if he does, and acceptance be refused, he must treat the bill as dishonoured, vide § 42. Although presentment, except in the specified cases, is not necessary to render any party to the bill liable, non-presentment may involve the person not presenting in liability. Thus, an agent who neglects to present a bill sent to him for presentment will be liable in damages, if loss result therefrom, as by the drawer failing in the interval, I. Bell's Com. 433; Van Dieman's Land Bank v. Victoria Bank, L. R. 3, P. C. 526.

(d.) Where the bill is payable at the residence or place of business of the drawee, presentment for acceptance on the day it falls due, is sufficient compliance with the stipulation.

$ 39

(e.) Reasonable diligence does not mean all possible dispatch. The holder is not bound, omissis omnibus aliis negotiis, to devote himself to presenting a bill for acceptance, but must use reasonable diligence which varies with the circumstances of each case, Gladwell v. Turner, L. R., 5 Ex. 59. Reasonable diligence in other concerns, as well as in presenting the particular bill must be allowed for, Darbishire v. Parkes, 6 East. 3.

Time for presenting bill

sight.

40. (1.) Subject to the provisions of this Act (a), payable after when a bill payable after sight is negotiated, the holder must either present it for acceptance (b) or negotiate (c) it within a reasonable time.

(2.) If he do not do so, the drawer and all indorsers prior to that holder are discharged.

(3.) In determining what is a reasonable time within the meaning of this section, regard shall be had to the nature of the bill, the usage of trade with respect to similar bills, and the facts of the particular case (d).

(a.) A holder who is excused from presenting a bill payable after sight in the cases mentioned in § 41 (2), is not bound to negotiate the bill. A holder in due course of such a bill is not affected by the failure of a previous holder to present in reasonable time, but may enforce it, notwithstanding such failure, against all parties liable thereon, vide § 38, but the party who has failed timeously to present for acceptance, cannot take recourse against the drawer and prior indorsers, if he is compelled to pay the holder in due course. The holder of a bill payable after sight, who is entitled to treat the bill as a promissory note, under the provisions of § 5 (2), is not bound to present or negotiate the bill in order to preserve his recourse against the drawer and indorsers, since the provisions of this Act as to presentment for acceptance do not apply to notes, vide § 89 (3).

(b.) Vide § 41.