Cap. 234 Art. 42Rights of mortgagee. 

(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 256(2) of the

Code of Organisation and Civil Procedure, in the event of default of any term or condition of a registered mortgage or of any document or agreement referred to therein, the mortgagee shall, upon giving notice in writing to the mortgagor -

(a) be entitled to take possession of the ship or share therein in respect of which he is registered; but except so far as may be necessary for making a mortgaged ship or share available as a security for the mortgage debt, the mortgagee shall not by reason of the mortgage be deemed to be the owner of the ship or share, nor shall the mortgagor be deemed to have ceased to be the owner thereof: Provided that any mortgagee may, by means of an application, seek the assistance of the Courts in the exercise of this right. The Court shall give all the orders and directions, as may be deemed necessary, to immediately and as expeditiously as possible grant such assistance to the mortgagee;

(b) have power absolutely to sell the ship or share in respect of which he is registered; but where there are more persons than one registered as mortgagees of the same ship or share, a subsequent mortgagee shall not, except under the order of a court of competent jurisdiction, sell the ship or share without the concurrence of every prior mortgagee; and if the proceeds of sale, after discharging the mortgage debt, show a surplus in his hands, the mortgagee shall deposit the same for the benefit of other creditors and of the mortgagor;

(c) have power to apply for any extensions, pay fees, receive certificates, and generally do all such things in the name of the owner as may be required in order to maintain the status and validity of the registration of the ship.

(2) A registered mortgage shall be deemed to be an executive title for the purposes of article 253 of the Code of Organization and Civil Procedure:

(a) where the obligation it secures is a debt certain liquidated and due and not consisting in the performance of an act; or

(b) where a maximum sum secured thereby is expressly stated in the instrument creating the security and such figure is recorded in the register for public notice.

(3) The provisions of this article shall apply to all registered mortgages which secure debts resulting from any account current or overdraft or other credit facility.

(4) In connection with the enforcement of any mortgage, not being a mortgage contemplated in sub-article (2), for the purpose of determining the amount certain liquidated and due or the actual sum due when the mortgage secures a future debt within an expressly stated maximum, in connection with any judicial sale of a ship, the mortgagee shall specify the sum due at the time of enforcement by means of an affidavit served on the mortgagor: Provided that this shall be without prejudice to the right of any interested party to contest such amount according to law.

(5) For the purpose of the proceedings referred to in this article the debtor shall be deemed to be duly served if the application or other act is served on the master of the vessel, or if he is absent from these Islands, on the local agent appointed for the vessel by the owners or their agent, or in the absence of such local agent on a curator appointed by the court to represent the debtor and the ship.