New Issue. 
54 
SECRETARIAL PRACTICE 
in respect of the shares renounced being the party in whose 
favour they were renounced. The execution of the letter 
of renunciation and the signature of the form of acceptance 
has a similar effect to a transfer of the shares, but it is 
not in law a transfer of shares attracting ad valorem duty, 
but an assignment of the right of the original allottee to be 
registered in respect of the shares. See re Pool Shipping Co. 
(1920), 1 Ch. 251; Collins v. Associated Greyhound Racecourses 
(1930), I Ch. p. 1. A time limit must be fixed within which 
letters of renunciation must be lodged or in default the original 
allottee will be entered in the register. As soon as that time 
has expired the secretary will have to inspect carefully all the 
forms that have been lodged. If the forms of renunciation and 
acceptance have been duly completed, he will enter the 
acceptor in the register instead of entering the original allottee; 
while if a form is defective, he will have to enter the original 
allottee. 
The question of what is the longest period which can safely 
be limited within which the letters of renunciation must be 
lodged is one of considerable difficulty. There is no statutory 
provision imposing any limit; but it is obvious that in the 
case of shares offered for subscription before the statutory 
meeting has been held the period should not be longer than will 
permit of the register being duly completed before the notice 
convening the statutory meeting is sent out. Unless this course 
is adopted, many of the subscribers would not receive the 
statutory report sent out for the statutory meeting. Again 
it is obviously inconvenient in view of s. 108 that shares 
should be issued upon such terms that at the date of the 
annual return no one is entered on the Register in respect 
thereof. No letters of renunciation should therefore be 
outstanding when the notice convening the annual meeting is 
sent out. It must also be borne in mind that if letters of 
renunciation were allowed generally to be outstanding for long 
periods, the law would probably be altered in order to prevent 
evasion of the ad valorem duty payable on transfers. In 
these circumstances it is thought that as a rule the period 
allowed should not exceed one month and in any event 
not be extended more than a few days after the date for pay- 
ment of the final instalment on the shares. The period last 
mentioned will enable issues to be placed, which is the primary 
and justifiable object of the issue of letters of allotment with 
letters of renunciation attached. 
Where a company makes an issue of new shares or deben- 
tures and desires to give existing shareholders or debenture 
holders a preferential right to apply for them in proportion