The Factors Act 1889 ( 52 & 53 Vict. c. 45) was an act of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace ...

that consolidated several earlier enactments related to factors in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Passage

The Factors Bill had its

first reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming, ...

in the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

on 19 March 1889, introduced by the

Lord Chancellor The Lord Chancellor, formally titled Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom. The lord chancellor is the minister of justice for England and Wales and the highest-ra ...

, Hardinge Giffard, 1st Baron Halsbury. The bill had its

second reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...

in the

on 6 May 1889 and was committed to the Standing Committee for Bills relating to Law, &c, which reported on 28 June 1889, with amendments. The amended bill was re-committed to a committee of the whole house, which met and reported on 1 July 1889, without amendments. The amended bill had its

third reading A reading of a bill is a stage of debate on the bill held by a general body of a legislature. In the Westminster system, developed in the United Kingdom, there are generally three readings of a bill as it passes through the stages of becoming ...

in the

on 2 July 1889 and passed, without amendments. The bill had its

in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

on 4 July 1889. The bill had its

in the

on 19 July 1889 and was committed to the Standing Committee on Trade, Shipping and Manufactures (including Agriculture and Fishing), which reported on 25 July 1889, with amendments. The amended bill was considered and was re-committed to a committee of the whole house on 31 July 1889, which met on 31 July 1889 and reported on 2 August 1889, with amendments. The amended bill had its

in the

on 2 August 1889 and passed, without amendments. The amended bill was considered and agreed to by the

on 9 August 1889, with amendments, which were considered and agreed to by the

on 13 August 1889. The bill was granted

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in othe ...

on 26 August 1889.

Provisions

Defined terms

Terms defined for the purposes of the act included: *mercantile agent: a person who, in the customary course of his business as an agent, had authority from another person to sell, consign or buy goods, or to raise money on the security of goods *document of title: the meaning of the term included a

bill of lading A bill of lading () (sometimes abbreviated as B/L or BOL) is a document issued by a common carrier, carrier (or their Law of agency, agent) to acknowledge receipt of cargo for shipment. Although the term is historically related only to Contract of ...

and any other document used in the ordinary course of business to prove possession or control of goods * pledge: the term included any contract pledging or giving lien or security on goods, whether in consideration of an original advance or a further or continuing advance.

Repealed enactments

Section 14 of the act repealed four earlier enactments, listed in the schedule to the act. Section 14 of the act also provided that the repeals would not affect any right acquired or liability incurred before the commencement of the act.

Legacy

The act was described as a Consolidation Act. The act was extended to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

by section 1 of the Factors (Scotland) Act 1890 ( 53 & 54 Vict. c. 40).

Notes

References

{{Authority control United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1889 Agency law History of international trade Sales occupations