For more particulars on evidence required to be lodged with a dealing or in response to a requisition, see the particular dealing requirements in Real Property Act Dealing requirements pages or Water Access Licence Dealing requirements pages.
Certified copies
A certified copy of a paper document (excluding statutory declarations and affidavits) must include a statement to the effect that the certifier has sighted the original document and the present copy is a true copy of the original. The statement must:
- be signed by a prescribed functionary (Justice of the Peace or legal practitioner), or
- bear a stamp identifying the organisation responsible for issuing the document and be signed by an authorised employee/officer of the organisation.
The statement must include the name and capacity of the certifier.
Where a document exists only in electronic form, a certified copy will be accepted if it has been certified in the following situations:
- where the certifier has observed the paper copy being printed directly from an official website that is under the control of the document's issuing authority, or
- where the certifier has observed the paper copy being printed directly from a computer that is under the control of the document's issuing authority, or
- where the issuing authority has endorsed a printout of the original document with its official stamp in ink
Where a person is unable to obtain a certified copy of an electronic document, a statutory declaration from the applicant to the dealing (or other person with the requisite knowledge) verifying that an annexed printed copy of the electronic document is a true copy of the original will be acceptable.
Disposal of evidence
The following applies to Torrens Title land and Water Access Licences.
The following guidelines are used by NSW LRS as regards disposal of evidence lodged to support registration of a dealing:
- a caveator's consent is filmed with the dealing consented to
- evidence accompanying a change of name of a company, incorporated association etc is filmed with the dealing
- evidence may be filmed with the dealing, depending on its importance
- for other evidence discretion is used as regards the return, retention or other disposal of evidence lodged.
It may be indicated on the document that evidence is to be returned. Original Old System documents lodged with dealings will be destroyed after microfilming. A certified copy may be lodged where the lodging party wishes to retain the original.
The dealing is marginally noted as to the action taken.
Faxed evidence
NSW LRS will no longer support receiving and sending of faxes from the 1st January 2016.
Office copy of an Order of Court
The following applies to Torrens Title land and Water Access Licences.
An office copy of an Order of Court is issued by the administrative office of the Court; the Order itself is made by the Court. The office copy must:
- have the seal of the Supreme Court affixed and be signed by the Sheriff
- have the seal of the District Court affixed and be signed by the Registrar or
- have the Registrar's Stamp of the Local Court affixed and be signed by the Local Court Registrar or have the facsimile signature of the Registrar affixed.
Plan annexed
A plan annexed to a Real Property Act dealing, including a plan that is contained within an annexure, that is referred to in the Land Description panel or operative clause of the dealing must:
- be signed by all parties
- be treated as an annexure
- be page numbered as for an annexure
- be suitable for scanning, i.e. a minimum of 10 point for numbers or text and
- not use colour (hatching and cross-hatching is acceptable providing text is not obscured).
A plan annexed to a dealing, including a plan that is contained within an annexure, that is not referred to in the Land Description panel or operative clause of the dealing must:
- be page numbered as for an annexure
- be suitable for scanning, i.e. a minimum of 10 point for numbers or text and
- must not use colour (hatching and cross-hatching is acceptable providing text is not obscured).
A full plan of survey is not acceptable as an annexure to a dealing.
A plan annexed to a dealing lodged by a private party must be approved by an Officer from Folio Management Section before accepting the dealing for lodgment.
Registered documents
The following applies to Torrens Title land and Water Access Licences.
Documents held in NSW LRS, e.g. Real Property Act dealings, Water Access Licence dealings, plans and deeds, may be referred to as evidence in support of a dealing. The lodgment number must be quoted.
Statutory declaration
The following applies to Torrens Title land and Water Access Licences.
A statutory declaration, like an oath, is a personal statement. Therefore, evidence in the form of a statutory declaration must be signed by the person making the declaration. It cannot be signed on the declarant's behalf, nor be made in the name of a company etc or be signed under the seal of a company etc.
An attorney makes a declaration in his or her own right, not on behalf of the donor.
A statutory declaration made in NSW must comply with s24 Oaths Act 1900 and take the following form:
'[name of applicant; an authorised officer of a company must make the declaration personally], do solemnly and sincerely declare that
...
and I make this solemn declaration conscientiously believing the same to be true, and by virtue of the provisions of the Oaths Act 1900'.
The date and place of the declaration must be stated, see s169 Conveyancing Act 1919.
A declaration made in a State or Territory other than NSW must be made pursuant to the equivalent local Act (see s169 Conveyancing Act 1919), i.e:
| ACT |
Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Commonwealth) |
| Northern Territory |
Oaths, Affidavits and Declarations Act 2010 |
| Queensland |
The Oaths Act 1867 to 1988 |
| South Australia |
Oaths Act 1936 |
| Tasmania |
Oaths Act 2001 |
| Victoria |
Oaths and Affirmations Act 2018 |
| Western Australia |
Oaths Affidavits and Statutory Declarations Act 2005 |
Where the declaration is made in a foreign country:
- the declaration must be made pursuant to the equivalent local statutory provision. Reference to the Oaths Act 1900 must be deleted and the local statutory provision substituted; or
- if made in an Australian Consulate before an Australian Consular Officer, reference to the Oaths Act 1900 must be deleted and Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Commonwealth) must be inserted or
- where there is no equivalent local statutory provision the declaration must be made:
- before an Australian or British Consular Officer. Reference to the Oaths Act 1900 must be deleted and Statutory Declarations Act 1959 (Commonwealth) must be inserted or
- pursuant to the UK Statutory Declarations Act 1835 (Imperial Declarations Act 1835).
Note
- use of the words 'Statutory Declaration' on their own is not sufficient to constitute a statutory declaration.
- an affidavit, i.e. a declaration not made pursuant to the Oaths Act 1900 but witnessed by a prescribed functionary, is generally acceptable in lieu of a statutory declaration.
See execution of a statutory declaration page.
Written Evidence
The following applies to Torrens Title land and Water Access Licences.
Evidence in written form, e.g. a letter of authority or direction, must contain a reference sufficient to link it to a particular case. The content of the document must be clear and unambiguous; qualifications are unacceptable. The document must be signed by the writer.
For a caveator's consent to a Real Property Act dealing.
Staff processing information
Note The following applies to Real Property Act dealings and Water Access Licence dealings.
Where documents used for evidence of identity, other than a statutory declaration, (eg driver's licence, passport, Local Council rates notice etc) are furnished with a dealing, a separate evidence label containing the barcoded evidence number is affixed to the top right-hand corner of a copy of each document. The label must not be marked in any way. The separate barcode label is to enable NSW LRS only to access the microfilmed document.
The evidence label contains the prefix 'EV' before the number.
Marginally note the dealing with the evidence number and the type of document, e.g. 'EV1234 driver's licence'.
Marginally note the copy of the evidence document with the dealing number and the dealing type, e.g. 'AA5432 PV'.
Forward the evidence document for microfilming in the same manner as the dealing.
Note The page numbering of the dealing may require adjustment where evidence documents have been extracted