CHAPTER 60 (Senate Bill No. 18-Mr. Sanders.) AN ACT to amend and re-enact sections four and five of chapter one hundred and forty-one, of the code, relating to writ of fieri facias. Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia: That sections four and five of chapter one hundred and forty-one of the code, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows: Section 4. To ascertain the estate on which a writ of fieri 2 facias is a lien, and to ascertain any real estate in or out of this 3 state to which a debtor named in such fieri facias is entitled, upon 4 the application of the execution creditor the judge or a commis5 sioner in chancery of any court of record, may, as provided here6 inafter, issue a summons requiring the execution debtor or any 6-a officer of a debtor corporation having any office in this state, 7 or debtor or bailee of his or it, requiring him or them to appear 8 before a commissioner in chancery as hereinafter provided at a 9 time and place to be designated in said summons, to answer upon 10 oath such questions as shall be propounded at such time and place 11 by counsel for the execution creditor or the commissioner. Said 12 summons shall be returnable not exceeding sixty days from date, 13 and the person served with the summons, shall appear at the time 14 and place mentioned and make answer under oath to such ques15 tions. Said questions and answers shall, if required by any 16 party, be taken down in writing at the expense of the party re17 questing it, and certified by the commissioner at the conclusion 18 thereof. If the person or persons so summoned fail to appear and 19 answer, or make any answers which are deemed by the commis20 sioner to be evasive, the commissioner after the service and return 21 day of a notice to, or rule upon the debtor, issued by such com22 missioner, and returnable to a day and place indicated in the 23 process, to show cause against it, may issue an attachment against 24 such debtor, returnable before him on a day and place certain, 25 set out in it, to compel such debtor to appear before the commis26 sioner and answer. But the commissioner shall enter in his 27 proceedings and report to the circuit judge of his county, any 28 and all objections taken by such debtor against answering any 29 questions; and if the court shall afterwards sustain any one or 30 more of such objections, the answers given, as to which objec31 tions are sustained, shall be held for naught in that or any other 32 cause. This proceeding may be based upon a fieri facias issued 33 by the court of record, or by any court not of record, and the 34 summons shall be served in the county in which it was issued. Sec. 5. Any real estate out of this state, to which it may ap2 pear by such examination the debtor is entitled, shall be forth3 with conveyed by him to the officer to whom was delivered the 4 said fieri facias; and any money, bank notes, securities, evidence 5 of debt, or other personal estate, which it may appear by such 6 examination are in the possession or under the control of the 7 debtor, though in the hands of some other person, shall be delivered 8 by him, as far as practicable, to the same officer, or to such other, 9 and in such manner as may be ordered by the court, when the 10 examination is before the court, or by the commissioner when 11 the examination is before him; and any chose in action or other 12 intangible property shall be assigned or conveyed to the officer. 13 Unless such conveyance, assignment and delivery be made, a 14 writ shall be issued by the judge's order, upon application, or if 15 the examination be not before the judge, by the commissioner, 16 directed to the sheriff of the county, requiring such sheriff to 17 take the debtor, and keep him safely until he shall make such 18 conveyance, assignment or delivery, upon doing which he shall 19 be discharged by the judge under whose order the writ issued, or if 20 issued by the commissioner, then by him. (Acts. 1872-3, c. 218-5; 21 1882, c. 127.) CHAPTER 61 (Committee Substitute for Senate Bill No. 32.) (By the Committee on the Judiciary.) AN ACT to amend chapter seventy-four of the code, by adding thereto section eleven, relating to recording assignments. [Passed April 26, 1921. In effect ninety days from passage. Governor April 30, 1921.] Approved by the of clerk as to recordation; judgment or note pledged as collateral not treated as assignment until actually sold or transferred. Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia: That chapter seventy-four of the code be amended by adding thereto section eleven, to read as follows: Section 11. Any assignment of a judgment lien or vendor's 2 lien, or note secured by a vendor's lien retained in the deed of 3 conveyance or by a note secured by a deed of trust or mortgage 4 on land or chattels shall be void as to creditors and subsequent 5 purchasers of such land or chattels for a valuable consideration 6 without notice until and except from the time such assignment 7 is duly admitted to record in the county wherein the property 8 effected by any such lien so assigned is situate. 9 All such assignments before being admitted to record must 10 be acknowledged by the assignor in the same manner as a release of 11 a lien is acknowledged and the clerk of the county court shall 12 record all such assignments admitted to record in his office in a 13 book kept for that purpose and to be known as the "Book of As14 signments" and index the same in the name of all the parties, 15 and he shall also note the fact of the assignment on the margin 16 of the record of such judgment lien, deed or deed of trust or 17 mortgage, with a reference to the book of assignment and page 18 where the assignment is recorded. Provided, however, the pledg19 ing of any such judgment or note, mentioned herein, as collateral 20 security for a debt or loan shall not be held or treated as an 21 assignment thereof until the same is actually sold or transferred in 22 payment of the pledge for which it was given as surety. CHAPTER 62 (Senate Bill No. 33-Mr. Harmer.) AN ACT to amend and re-enact section two of chapter seventy-six of the code of West Virginia, as amended and re-enacted by chapter forty-nine of the acts of one thousand nine hundred and seventeen, regular session, relating to forms of releases and acknowledgments. [Passed April 26, 1921. In effect ninety days from passage. Governor April 30, 1921.] Approved by the lien must be acknowledged as release of same is acknowledged. Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia: That section two of chapter seventy-six of the code of West Virginia as amended and re-enacted by chapter forty-nine of the acts of one thousand nine hundred and seventeen, regular session, be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows: Section 2. Releases and their acknowledgments may be in 2 form or effect as follows: 3 (1) In case of a mortgage or deed of trust: "I, Ahereby release a mortgage (or deed of trust) made by D to me (or to E- — F 4 B 5 C 6 to and assigned to me) dated the B -, my trustee, or day of court of (To be B justice (or clerk of the 10 Acknowledged before the subscriber, by A 11 this day of 12 (To be signed) G H 13 county court, notary public, etc., as the case may be) of 14 county). 15 (2) In case of a lien for purchase money, reserved by con16 veyance: "I, A- — Bhereby release the right reserved 17 to me in a conveyance executed by me (or myself and wife, or and assigned to me) to C- — D- 18 by 19 20 day of, etc. (as in the preceding form)." (3) In case of a judgment or decree: "I, A dated the B 21 hereby release a judgment (or decree) in my favor (or in favor 22 of I 23 of I K- which has been assigned to me; or in favor for my use) against CD for 24 (stating the amount) with interest and cost rendered by (stating 25 the court by which, or the justice by whom it was rendered, and 26 the term or date at which it was rendered, to be signed and 27 acknowledged as above)." 28 Every assignment of any such lien must be acknowledged by 29 the assignor, before it can be recorded, in the same manner as a 30 release of the lien is acknowledged. CHAPTER 63 (Senate Bill No. 50-Mr. Stewart.) AN ACT to amend and re-enact section six-a of chapter seventy-three of the code of West Virginia relating to the authentication and record of deeds and other writings. [Passed April 29, 1921. In effect ninety days from passage. Became a law without the approval of the Governor.] SEC. 6-a. Authentication and record of deeds and other writings; ac- acknowledgment does not render void; duly certified exemplifications to be legal evidence; when this act not to apply. Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia: That section six-a of chapter seventy-three of the code of West Virginia be amended and re-enacted so as to read as follows: Section 6-a. That no grant, bargain and sale, feoffment, deed 2 of conveyance, mortgage, trust, release, assignment, or other as3 surance of land, tenements and hereditaments, or writing pur 4 porting to grant and convey the same, or power of attorney relating 5 thereto, heretofore made, or executed, and delivered by husband 6 and wife to a bona fide purchaser for good and valuable consider7 ation and acknowledged by them before an officer duly authorized 8 by law to take such acknowledgments, made, executed, acknowl9 edged and delivered prior to the first day of March, one thousand 10 nine hundred and twenty, shall be deemed, held or adjudged in11 valid, or defective, or insufficient in law or in equity, by reason of 12 any informality or omission in setting forth the particulars of the 13 acknowledgment made before such officer aforesaid in the certifi14 cation thereof, or in stating the official character of such officer 15 or the place of taking the acknowledgment, or by reason of the 16 fact that the wife executed such instrument prior to the execution 17 thereof by the husband, or by reason of the fact that the parties 18 making or executing the instrument, or writing or any of them, 19 omitted to seal the same; but every such power of attorney shall be 20 valid, and all and every such grant, bargain and sale, feoffment, 21 mortgage, trust, deed of conveyance instrument, writing and ac22 knowledgment aforesaid, shall be as good, valid and effectual in 23 law for transferring, passing and conveying the estate, right, title 24 and interest of such husband and wife, and of each of them, and 25 any other person, in and to the land, tenements and heredita26 ments and real estate mentioned in the same, as if all the requisites 27 and particulars of such acknowledgment mentioned in any law in |