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Building Societies Act 1965

Miscellaneous provisions

127: Provisions as to shares held jointly

You could also call this:

“Rules for when people share ownership of building society shares”

When two or more people own shares together in a building society, there are special rules about how this works. The order of the names on the share register is important. The person whose name is first on the list is called the “first named joint holder”.

You can choose the order your names appear on the list. This order matters because the society can send notices to just the first person on the list, and that counts as telling everyone.

Any of the joint holders can ask for a copy of the society’s financial statement. When it’s time to vote, only the vote of the most senior person (the one highest on the list) counts, unless the society’s rules say something different.

For some parts of the law, only the first named person is counted as a member of the society. This affects things like who can apply for certain rights under the law.

The society doesn’t have to list all the joint holders’ names and addresses in their main register. They only need to include the first named person’s details and note that there are other joint holders.

These rules help the society manage shares that are owned by more than one person, making things simpler for both the society and the shareholders.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM372390.

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Part 9 Miscellaneous provisions

127Provisions as to shares held jointly

  1. This section shall have effect where shares in a society are held by 2 or more persons jointly; and in this section seniority of joint holders shall be determined by the order in which the names stand in the register of members and the expression first named joint holder, in relation to any shares so held, means such one of the joint holders as is named first in the society's books.

  2. The joint holders of any shares shall be entitled to choose the order in which they are named in the society's books.

  3. Subject to subsection (4), except where the society's rules otherwise provide, any notice or other document may be given or sent by the society to the joint holders by being given or sent to the first named joint holder.

  4. Nothing in subsection (3) shall prevent any of the joint holders from exercising the right under this Act of a member of a society to obtain from it on demand a copy of the statement of financial position.

  5. Except where the society's rules otherwise provide, the vote of the senior who tenders a vote at a meeting of the society whether in person or by proxy shall be accepted to the exclusion of the votes of the other joint holders.

  6. For the purposes of section 115, the shares shall be treated as being held by the first named joint holder alone; and accordingly a person who is a member of the society by reason only of being a joint holder of those shares, other than the first named joint holder, shall not be regarded as a member of the society for the purposes of that section.

  7. The first named joint holder, but none of the other joint holders, shall have the right to join in making an application under section 123; and any reference in that section to the total membership of a society shall be construed accordingly.

  8. In the register to be maintained under section 74, it shall not be necessary to enter the name and address of a person who is one of the joint holders, other than the first named joint holder, by reason only that that person is a joint holder of those shares; and if that person's name and address are entered in the register in respect of those shares the entry shall indicate that that person is a joint holder who is not the first named joint holder.

Notes
  • Section 127: replaced, on , by section 30 of the Building Societies Amendment Act 1987 (1987 No 175).
  • Section 127(4): amended, on , pursuant to section 6(1) of the Financial Reporting Amendment Act 1997 (1997 No 17).