Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) The rights of a person as owner of a policy may only be assigned at law under this section.
(2) An assignment is not effective at law unless the following requirements have been satisfied:
(a) the assignment must be by memorandum of transfer in accordance with subsection (2A);
(b) the memorandum must be endorsed (including by electronic means) on the policy document or on an annexure to the policy document that is referred to in the policy document or in another annexure to the policy document;
(c) the memorandum must be signed by the transferor and the transferee;
(d) the assignment must be registered in a register of assignments kept by the life company concerned;
(e) the date of registration must be inserted in the memorandum;
(f) the memorandum must be signed by the principal executive officer of the life company or by a person authorised by the principal executive officer to sign such memoranda.
(2A) A memorandum of transfer referred to in paragraph (2)(a) is in accordance with this subsection if:
(a) the memorandum of transfer is in the form approved by ASIC under subsection (2B); and
(b) any other requirements set out in regulations made for the purposes of this paragraph in relation to the memorandum of transfer are satisfied.
(2B) For the purposes of paragraph (2A)(a), ASIC must approve, in writing, the form of a memorandum of transfer referred to in paragraph (2)(a).
(3) If all the requirements of subsection (2) are satisfied, an assignment has the following effects at law:
(a) the transferee has all the rights and powers, and is subject to all the liabilities, of the transferor under the policy;
(b) the transferee may sue in his or her own name on the policy;
(c) payment to the transferee of money due under the policy discharges the life company from all liability under the policy in respect of the money;
(d) the memorandum of transfer is conclusively presumed to have been registered in accordance with subsection (2) on the date shown in the memorandum;
(e) as between the life company and a person claiming money under the policy, the transferee is conclusively presumed, for all purposes, to have been the absolute owner of the policy at the time of registration of the assignment, free from all trusts, rights, equities and interests, and entitled to receive the money and give a good discharge for it;
(f) any security over the policy given by the transferee is effective in spite of any trust or any right, equity or interest of another person;
(g) the surrender of the policy by the transferee is effective in spite of any trust or any right, equity or interest of another person;
(h) the life company, in respect of any dealing it has with the transferee, is not required or concerned to inquire as to the circumstances in which, or the consideration for which, the policy was assigned to the transferee or any previous transferee;
(i) subject to section 202, the life company, in respect of any dealing it has with the transferee, is not affected by express, implied or constructive notice of any trust, right, equity or interest.
(4) An assignment under this section does not:
(a) make the transferee a member of the life company; or
(b) deprive the transferor of membership of the company in respect of the policy;
except in accordance with the company's constitution.
(5) This section does not:
(a) impose on a person under 16 any liability to which he or she would not be subject apart from this section; or
(b) confer on a person under 16 any power or capacity he or she would not have apart from this section; or
(c) render effective a receipt, security or surrender given by a person under 16 if it would not be effective apart from this section.
(6) The rights and liabilities under a policy are not merged or extinguished, either at law or in equity, merely because the policy is assigned, whether at law or in equity, to the life company that issued the policy.
(7) A life company is not obliged to register an assignment under paragraph (2)(d) if the company is required or permitted, by another law of the Commonwealth, to refuse to register the assignment.
(8) This section:
(a) does not prejudice the effect in equity of an assignment of the rights of a person as owner of a policy that is made otherwise than under this section; and
(b) has effect subject to section 203.