Presumptions as to documents
81.
—(1) The court shall presume to be genuine every document purporting to be a certificate, certified copy or other document which is by law declared to be admissible as evidence of any particular fact, and which purports to be duly certified by any public officer in Singapore or any officer in Malaysia who is duly authorised thereto, if such document is substantially in the form and purports to be executed in the manner directed by law in that behalf.
(2) The court shall also presume that any officer by whom any such document purports to be signed or certified held, when he signed it, the official character which he claims in such document.
82. Whenever any document is produced before any court purporting to be a record or memorandum of the evidence or of any part of the evidence given by a witness in a judicial proceeding or before any officer authorised by law to take such evidence, or to be a statement or confession by any prisoner or accused person, taken in accordance with law and purporting to be signed by any Judge or Magistrate or by any such authorised officer, the court shall presume —
(a)
that the document is genuine;
(b)
that any statements as to the circumstances under which it was taken, purporting to be made by the person signing it, are true; and
(c)
that such evidence, statement or confession was duly taken.
83. 2The court shall presume the genuineness of every document purporting to be the Government Gazette of Singapore or the Government Gazette of Malaysia or of any part of the Commonwealth, or to be the Gazette issued by the local government of any part of Malaysia or of the Commonwealth, or to be a newspaper or journal and of every document purporting to be a document directed by any law to be kept by any person, if such document is kept substantially in the form required by law and is produced from proper custody.
2 See also section 48 of the Interpretation Act (Cap. 1) and the explanation appended to section 92 of this Act.
84. When any document is produced before any court purporting to be a document which by the law in force for the time being in England or Northern Ireland would be admissible in proof of any particular in any court of justice in England or Northern Ireland, without proof of the seal or stamp or signature authenticating it, or of the judicial or official character claimed by the person by whom it purports to be signed —
(a)
the court shall presume that such seal, stamp or signature is genuine, and that the person signing it held at the time when he signed it the judicial or official character which he claims; and
(b)
the document shall be admissible for the same purpose for which it would be admissible in England or Northern Ireland.
86. The court shall presume the genuineness of every book purporting —
(a)
to be printed or published under the authority of the government of any country and to contain any of the laws of that country; or
(b)
to contain reports of decisions of the courts of such country.
87. The court shall presume that every document purporting to be a power of attorney, and to have been executed before and authenticated by a notary public or any court, Judge, Magistrate or consular officer of Singapore, was so executed and authenticated.
88. The court may presume that any document purporting to be a certified copy of any judicial record of any country not forming part of the Commonwealth is genuine and accurate if the document purports to be certified in any manner which is certified by any representative of the President or of Her Britannic Majesty in or for such country to be the manner commonly in use in that country for the certification of copies of judicial records.
89. The court may presume that any book to which it may refer for information on matters of public or general interest, and that any published map or chart the statements of which are relevant facts and which is produced for its inspection, was written and published by the person and at the time and place by whom or at which it purports to have been written or published.
90. The court may presume that a message forwarded from a telegraph office to the person to whom such message purports to be addressed corresponds with a message delivered for transmission at the office from which the message purports to be sent; but the court shall not make any presumption as to the person by whom such message was delivered for transmission.
91. The court shall presume that every document called for and not produced, after notice to produce given under section 68, was attested, stamped and executed in the manner required by law.
92. Where any document purporting or proved to be 30 years old is produced from any custody which the court in the particular case considers proper, the court may presume that the signature and every other part of such document which purports to be in the handwriting of any particular person is in that person’s handwriting, and in the case of a document executed or attested, that it was duly executed and attested by the persons by whom it purports to be executed and attested.
Explanation .—Documents are said to be in proper custody if they are in the place in which and under the care of the person with whom they would naturally be; but no custody is improper if it is proved to have had a legitimate origin, or if the circumstances of the particular case are such as to render such an origin probable. This explanation applies also to section 83.
Illustrations
(a)
A has been in possession of landed property for a long time. He produces from his custody deeds relating to the land, showing his titles to it. The custody is proper.
(b)
A produces deeds relating to landed property of which he is the mortgagee. The mortgagor is in possession. The custody is proper.
(c)
A, a connection of B, produces deeds relating to lands in B’s possession, which were deposited with him by B for safe custody. The custody is proper.