WINDING UP

2472
for the benefit of the winding up. This will depend very
largely upon the nature of the covenants in the lease. If
the rent is high and the covenants onerous, the value may
be small, and on the property being retained the landlord
will be entitled to be paid rent in full during the liquidation.

Under the Act of 1908, the only alternative open to the
liquidator was to notify the landlord of his intention to
abandon the premises in which case the landlord could only
prove in the liquidation with the other creditors for rent
accruing during the liquidation and future rent. Under the
Act of 1929, however, the liquidator is given the power of dis-
claimer of leaseholds, and other onerous property analagous
to that which a Trustee in Bankruptcy has under the Bank-
ruptcy Act, 1914 [s. 267]. That section provides that where
any part of the property of a company which is being wound
up consists of land of any tenure burdened with onerous
covenants, of shares or stock in companies, of unprofitable
contracts or of any other property that is unsaleable, or not
readily saleable, by reason of its binding the possessor thereof
to the performance of any onerous act, or to the payment of
any sum of money, the liquidator, notwithstanding that he
has endeavoured to sell or has taken possession of the property
or exercised any act of ownership in relation thereto, may,
with the leave of the Court, but subject to the provisions of the
section, by writing signed by him disclaim the property. It
will be noted that the leave of the Court is essential prior to
the disclaimer and notice of disclaimer must be in writing
signed by the liquidator. Moreover, notice of disclaimer
must be given within 12 months after the commencement of
the winding up, or such extended period as the Court may
allow, unless the properties which it is desired to disclaim do
not come to the knowledge of the liquidator within one month
after the commencement of the winding up, in which case the
period within which the notice of disclaimer must be given is
calculated from the date on which the liquidator became
aware of the property. By sub-s. (2) the disclaimer operates
to determine as from the date of disclaimer the rights interest
and liabilities of the Company and the property of the company
n or in respect of the property disclaimed, but does not, except
so far as is necessary for the purpose of releasing the company
and the property of the company from liability, affect the
rights or liabilities of any other person. In order that persons
interested may not be left in doubt as to the intentions of the
liquidator sub-s. (4) provides that any interested person may
make application to the liquidator in writing requiring him to
decide whether he will or will not disclaim and that if he has