{"id":"st-james-church-land-act-1906","name":"St. James' Church Land Act 1906","slug":"st-james-church-land-act-1906","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"vic","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":178635,"registerId":"vic-st-james-church-land-act-1906-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-05","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"St. James' Church Land Act 1906","content":"Victorian Legislation and Parliamentary Documentsi\nVersion No. 001\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\nAct No. 2064/1906\nVersion as at 3 March 2003\nTABLE OF PROVISIONS\nSection Page\n1. Short title 2\n2. Application of Acts and Orders 2\n3. Powers of disposition 2\n4. Vesting of certain lands in Trust corporation of local diocese 2\n__________________\nSCHEDULE 4\n═══════════════\nENDNOTES 7\n1. General Information 7\n2. Table of Amendments 8\n3. Explanatory Details 9\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary Documents1\nVersion No. 001\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\nAct No. 2064/1906\nVersion as at 3 March 2003\nAn Act to further alter the Trusts and Limitations in respect of\nportion of the Lands in the City of Melbourne generally known\nas St. James' Church Lands and for other purposes.\nPreamble\nWHEREAS certain lands situate in the City of\nMelbourne are vested in the Church of England\nTrusts Corporation for the Diocese of Melbourne\nand such lands are comprised in the Certificates of\nTitle entered in the Register-book volume 1330\nfolio 265877 and volume 1962 folio 392256 and\nvolume 2710 folio 541843:\nAND WHEREAS the purposes to which the\nproceeds of disposition of such lands are to be\napplied are set out and declared in Orders in\nCouncil of the fourth day of January One thousand\neight hundred and seventy-two and the twenty-\nthird day of March One thousand eight hundred\nand seventy-four and published in the Government\nGazette of the ninth day of February One thousand\neight hundred and seventy-two and twenty-seventh\nday of March One thousand eight hundred and\nseventy-four and also in the St. James' Church\nLands Act 1891 No. 1209 respectively:\nAND WHEREAS since the passing of the said Act\nthe Diocese of Melbourne has been subdivided and\nthree new Dioceses have been formed viz.:—the\nDiocese of Bendigo the Diocese of Wangaratta and\nthe Diocese of Gippsland:\nAND WHEREAS it is expedient that in regard to\nthe portion of such lands specified in the Schedule\nhereto the powers of disposition and the purposes\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n2\nto which the proceeds of disposition thereof should\nbe applied should be altered as hereinafter\nprovided:\nBE IT THEREFORE ENACTED by the King's Most\nExcellent Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the\nLegislative Council and the Legislative Assembly of Victoria\nin this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of\nthe same as follows (that is to say):\n1. Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the St. James' Church\nLand Act 1906.\n2. Application of Acts and Orders\nThe Act of the Parliament of Victoria No. 1209\nand the Orders in Council of the fourth day of\nJanuary One thousand eight hundred and seventy-\ntwo and twenty-third day of March One thousand\neight hundred and seventy-four shall from the date\nof the passing of this Act not apply to the lands\nspecified in the Schedule to this Act.\n3. Powers of disposition\nThe powers of disposition of the said specified\nlands by the Church of England Trusts\nCorporation for the Diocese of Melbourne and the\npurposes for which the proceeds of disposition\nthereof are to be applied shall be set out in the\nSchedule hereto.\n4. Vesting of certain lands in Trust corporation of local\ndiocese\nAny land now situated in any of the Dioceses of\nBendigo Wangaratta or Gippsland but formerly\nsituated in the Diocese of Melbourne and now\nheld by the Church of England Trusts Corporation\nfor the Diocese of Melbourne for the benefit of\nsuch last-mentioned Diocese is hereby vested in\ns. 1\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n3\nthe Trusts Corporation of the Diocese in which\nsuch land is situated for the benefit of such\nDiocese and wherever in any powers of\ndisposition or of application of the proceeds\nthereof in any Order in Council dealing with any\nsuch land the word Melbourne occurs there shall\nbe substituted for it the name of the Diocese in\nwhich such land is situated.\n__________________\ns. 4\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n4\nSCHEDULE\n1. All that piece or parcel of land being part of section fifteen city of\nMelbourne parish of North Melbourne county of Bourke commencing\non the north side of Collins-street at its intersection with the west side\nof William-street and bounded on the south by Collins-street three\nhundred and thirty feet on the west by allotment 4 of said section one\nhundred and thirty-two feet on the north by a private lane of twenty\nfeet wide three hundred and thirty feet on the east by William-street\none hundred and thirty-two feet to the commencing point.\n2. All that piece or parcel of land being other part of said section fifteen\ncity of Melbourne commencing at a point on the west side of William-\nstreet one hundred and fifty-two feet north of Collins-street and\nbounded on the south by a private lane of twenty feet wide ninety feet\non the west by other part of the said section thirty-two feet three\ninches on the north by private lane from Little Collins-street seventeen\nfeet thence on the east by other part of the said section bearing south\nnine inches thence on the north by other part of said section seventy-\nthree feet and on the east by William-street thirty-one feet six inches\nto the commencing point.\n3. All that piece or parcel of land being other part of said section fifteen\ncity of Melbourne commencing at a point on the west side of William-\nstreet at its intersection with the south side of Little Collins-street\nbounded on the east by William-street eighty-seven feet on the south\nby other part of said section seventy-three feet on the west by a private\nlane seventeen feet wide eighty-seven feet and on the north by Little\nCollins-street seventy-three feet to the commencing point.\n4. All that piece or parcel of land being other part of said section fifteen\ncity of Melbourne commencing at the north-east corner of said section\nand bounded on the east by William-street three hundred and thirteen\nfeet six inches on the south by Little Collin-street two hundred and\neighty-three feet nine and a half inches on the west by Church-street\none hundred and fifty-six feet nine inches on the north by other part of\nthe said section one hundred and sixteen feet nine inches again on the\nwest by other part of the said section one hundred and fifty-six feet\nnine inches and again on the north by Bourke-street one hundred and\nsixty-seven feet and half-an-inch to the commencing point.\nPowers of Disposition\nPower to lease (whether on building lease or otherwise) sell create\neasements reserve or close roads mortgage or exchange all or any\nparts of the above-described lands and to erect buildings on any part\nthereof such powers to be exercised with the consent of the Bishop or\nSections 2, 3.\nSch.\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n5\nAdministrator of the Diocese of Melbourne for the time being acting\nunder the advice of the Council of the Diocese. Provided that no sale\nexchange mortgage or other security shall be made or given over the\nsaid property or any portion thereof without the consent in writing of\nthe Trusts Corporation of each of the Dioceses of Bendigo Wangaratta\nand Gippsland but this proviso shall not apply to any mortgage or\nother security which may be given for the purpose of renewing or\nraising money to pay off wholly or in part the amount of the existing\nmortgage.\nPurposes to which Proceeds of Disposition are to be Applied\n1. As to capital moneys—\n(1) In paying off wholly or in part the amount of any mortgage;\nand\n(2) To such purposes in accordance with this Act as may be\ndetermined upon from time to time by the Trusts\nCorporations of the Diocese of Melbourne Bendigo\nWangaratta and Gippsland acting under the direction of the\nBishop in Council of each of the said Dioceses respectively.\n2. As to all income moneys—\nTo pay—\n(1) All interest rates taxes assessments repairs cost of collection\nand all other outgoings whatsoever in connexion with the\nsaid property or the ownership thereof;\n(2) One thousand one hundred pounds per annum to the\nIncumbent for the time being of the Ecclesiastical Parish of\nSt. James' Melbourne (which payment is a legal liability\nupon the said St. James' property existing from the year One\nthousand eight hundred and eighty-three);\n(3) Two hundred and forty pounds per annum to the Clergy\nProvident Fund from the first day of January One thousand\nnine hundred and seven;\n(4) And after the said first day of January One thousand nine\nhundred and seven to make provision for the payment of\nOne thousand six hundred and forty-one pounds and twelve\nshillings to the said fund before the end of the year One\nthousand nine hundred and twenty-five with simple interest\nat the rate of four per cent. per annum from the said first day\nof January One thousand nine hundred and seven;\nSch.\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n6\n(5) Then to pay sixteen and two-thirds per cent. per annum of\nthe net income to the Bishop or Administrator of each of the\nDioceses of Bendigo Wangaratta and Gippsland to be\napplied by him acting with the advice of the Council of his\nDiocese to such purposes as the Synod of his Diocese may\nfrom time to time direct. The balance of the said net income\nshall be paid over to the Bishop or Administrator of the\nDiocese of Melbourne to be dealt with as income of the\nConsolidated Fund in accordance with the provisions of the\nChurch Funds Act 1878 of the Synod of the Church of\nEngland in the Diocese of Melbourne or any amendment\nthereof.\n═══════════════\nSch.\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n7\nENDNOTES\n1. General Information\nThe St. James' Church Land Act 1906 was assented to on 28 December\n1906 and came into operation on 28 December 1906.\nEndnotes\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n8\n2. Table of Amendments\nThere are no amendments made to the St. James' Church Land Act 1906 by\nActs and subordinate instruments.\nEndnotes\n\nVictorian Legislation and Parliamentary DocumentsAct No. 2064/1906\nSt. James' Church Land Act 1906\n9\n3. Explanatory Details\nNo entries at date of publication.\nEndnotes","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: adjusting the trusts and powers over specific St James' Church lands following the subdivision of the Melbourne Diocese. The scope has not expanded beyond this discrete property management matter."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with only 4 operative sections plus a Schedule","Minimal defined terms (relies on external knowledge of 'Trusts Corporation', 'Bishop in Council', 'Synod')","Straightforward conditional logic: consent required from all four dioceses for dispositions, with single exception for mortgage refinancing","Financial distribution formula is specific but arithmetic (fixed pound amounts, percentages, dates)","Cross-references to three external instruments: St James' Church Lands Act 1891, Orders in Council from 1872 and 1874, and Church Funds Act 1878","Schedule contains detailed metes and bounds land descriptions typical of 19th/early 20th century conveyancing","No nested exceptions or complex deeming provisions"],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does:**\n\nThis 1906 Victorian law changes the rules about how certain church-owned land in Melbourne can be sold, leased, or otherwise dealt with, and what happens to the money raised.\n\n**The backstory:**\n- In the 1870s, the government made orders about \"St. James' Church Lands\" — valuable city properties held by the Anglican Church (Church of England) for the Diocese of Melbourne.\n- Since then, the original Melbourne Diocese split into four separate dioceses: Melbourne, Bendigo, Wangaratta, and Gippsland.\n- This Act updates the arrangements to reflect that split.\n\n**Key changes:**\n\n- **Specific Melbourne land freed up:** Four parcels of land in the city (around Collins Street, William Street, Little Collins Street and Bourke Street) are removed from the old 1870s rules and the 1891 Act. New rules apply instead.\n\n- **New powers to deal with the land:** The Church of England Trusts Corporation for the Diocese of Melbourne can now lease, sell, mortgage, or exchange this land, or build on it — but only with the Bishop's consent and advice from the Diocesan Council.\n\n- **Important restriction:** Any sale, exchange, or mortgage requires written consent from **all four dioceses** (Melbourne, Bendigo, Wangaratta, and Gippsland). The only exception is refinancing an existing mortgage.\n\n- **What happens to the money:**\n  - **Capital (sale proceeds):** First pay off any mortgage, then the four dioceses jointly decide how to use the rest.\n  - **Rental income:** Must pay specific annual amounts to:\n    - The priest at St James' Church (£1,100 per year — an obligation dating back to 1883)\n    - The Clergy Provident Fund (a pension fund for clergy) — £240 per year from 1907, plus building up a fund of £1,641 by 1925\n    - Then split 16.67% of what's left to each of Bendigo, Wangaratta and Gippsland dioceses for their own purposes\n    - The remainder goes to Melbourne Diocese's consolidated fund\n\n- **Land outside Melbourne transferred:** Any land that used to be in Melbourne Diocese but now sits in Bendigo, Wangaratta or Gippsland is formally transferred to the trust corporation of that local diocese. References to \"Melbourne\" in old documents are automatically updated to the correct diocese name.\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- The Anglican Church in Victoria (specifically the four dioceses)\n- The trustees managing church property\n- The parish of St James' Melbourne (guaranteed income)\n- Anyone leasing or buying the specified city properties\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis is a practical housekeeping law that allowed the Anglican Church to modernise its property management after diocesan restructuring, while protecting the financial interests of all four dioceses and maintaining historic obligations to St James' parish and clergy pensions."},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The Act is consistent with its stated original purpose: to alter trusts and limitations for specified St. James' Church lands so that dispositions and the distribution of proceeds reflect the later creation of new dioceses. It does not broaden application to other properties or add unrelated regulatory schemes. The change is corrective and reallocative (reassigning vesting and revenue shares), not an expansion beyond that original narrow purpose (preamble; ss.2–4; Schedule)."},"complexity_factors":["Short length: 4 substantive sections plus a Schedule that contains detailed land descriptions and rules.","Schedule contains precise cadastral descriptions of four parcels (technical but straightforward).","Cross-references to earlier Acts and Orders in Council (pre-existing instruments displaced by s.2).","Consent conditions: written consent required from the Trusts Corporation of Bendigo, Wangaratta and Gippsland for sales/exchanges/mortgages, with an express exception for refinancing mortgages (Schedule).","Detailed allocation of income with fixed monetary amounts and a percentage split (includes historical dated obligations: £1,100 pa, £240 pa, repayment schedule to 1925, and 16 2/3% allocations).","Vesting rule requiring substitution of diocesan names in earlier instruments (s.4) — minor administrative complexity.","Some archaic wording and historic monetary figures that require interpretation in modern context (Schedule)."],"plain_english_summary":"**What this law does (mechanically)\n\n- Changes which older rules apply to certain St. James' Church lands in central Melbourne and replaces those rules for the parcels listed in the Schedule (s.2).  \n- Sets out what the Church of England Trusts Corporation for the Diocese of Melbourne may do with those specific parcels (lease, sell, mortgage, create easements, close roads, build, exchange), subject to specified consents and limits (Schedule: \"Powers of Disposition\").  \n- Vest any parcel that now lies in the new dioceses of Bendigo, Wangaratta or Gippsland (but used to be in the Diocese of Melbourne) in the Trusts Corporation of the diocese where the land now sits; where earlier instruments refer to \"Melbourne\" in relation to such land, substitute the local diocese's name (s.4).  \n- Prescribes how sale or rental proceeds (capital and income) from the listed land must be applied: limited capital uses (mortgage repayment and uses agreed by diocesan Trusts acting under their bishops), and detailed income priorities (property costs, an historic annual payment to the St. James' incumbent, payments to the Clergy Provident Fund, a fixed share to the Bishops/Administrators of Bendigo, Wangaratta and Gippsland, and the remainder to Melbourne’s diocesan consolidated fund under the Church Funds Act) (Schedule: \"Purposes to which Proceeds of Disposition are to be Applied\").\n\n**Who it affects\n\n- The Church of England Trusts Corporation for the Diocese of Melbourne (principal legal owner and decision-maker for the listed land) (s.3; Schedule).  \n- The Trusts Corporations and Bishops/Administrators of the Dioceses of Bendigo, Wangaratta and Gippsland (they must give written consent to sales/exchanges/mortgages in many cases and receive specified income shares) (Schedule; s.4).  \n- The Incumbent of the Ecclesiastical Parish of St. James' (receipt of a fixed annual payment) and the Clergy Provident Fund (scheduled payments) (Schedule).  \n- Third parties that transact with the Church (buyers, lessees, mortgagees) because dispositions require the listed consents and some dispositions are restricted by the Schedule.  \n\n**Why it matters (purpose claimed by the Act and practical effects)\n\n- The Act’s stated purpose is to alter the trusts and limitations applying to specified St. James' lands so that proceeds and powers reflect the later subdivision of the Diocese of Melbourne into new dioceses (preamble; s.2–4).  \n- Practically, the law reallocates decision rights and revenue shares: some decision-making becomes collective (consent of multiple diocesan Trusts is required for major disposals), income is earmarked in fixed priorities (property costs → historic payments → provident fund obligations → fixed percentage payments to three diocesan bishops → remainder to Melbourne's consolidated church fund).  \n\n**Costs, incentives and implementation mechanics to note (section citations in parentheses)\n\n- Who pays / who benefits: ongoing property operating costs and the specified annual liabilities are paid from the property’s income (Schedule). Beneficiaries include the St. James' incumbent, the Clergy Provident Fund, the three regional bishops (each receives 16 2/3% of net income), and finally the Melbourne diocesan consolidated fund (Schedule).  \n- Decision-makers and veto points: major dispositions (sale, exchange, mortgage) require the written consent of the Trusts Corporation of Bendigo, Wangaratta and Gippsland in addition to the Bishop/Administrator and Diocesan Council of Melbourne (Schedule). That creates shared control and gives those dioceses leverage over market transactions involving the land.  \n- Transactional friction vs liquidity: the consent requirement may reduce speed or increase negotiation complexity for prospective purchasers or financiers; the Schedule however expressly allows mortgages given for the purpose of renewing or raising money to pay off existing mortgage amounts without needing the dioceses’ consent, which eases refinancing (Schedule: proviso).  \n- Earmarking and fungibility: capital receipts are ring-fenced for mortgage repayment or for uses jointly decided by the diocesan Trusts under episcopal direction (Schedule). Income is tightly earmarked in a ranking order, reducing the diocese’s discretionary use of that property’s cashflows (Schedule).  \n- Implementation tasks and risks: vesting land in local diocesan Trusts (s.4) requires administrative transfer steps and correct substitution of diocesan names in older instruments; mistaken registrations or failure to obtain the required written consents could create legal challenges to transfers or encumbrances.  \n- Effects on private enterprise: the Act permits standard commercial dealings (leases, building leases, sales, mortgages) which enables development and investment subject to the additional consent requirements; those requirements are the primary constraint on market flexibility (Schedule; s.3–4).  \n\n**Trade-offs and opportunity costs (concrete mechanisms)\n\n- Concentrated benefits: the specified beneficiaries (incumbent, provident fund, three regional bishops, Melbourne consolidated fund) have clear, enforceable entitlements (Schedule).  \n- Diffuse costs: the property’s net income available for other diocesan uses is reduced by fixed payments and percentage allocations, which may limit longer-term diocesan budgeting options.  \n- Rent- or bargaining-value effects: the requirement that three diocesan Trusts consent to major dispositions gives those Trusts bargaining power when large financial decisions are made about the property.  \n\n**Compliance burden and discretion\n\n- Administrative burden is modest but non‑trivial: written consents, proper vesting/registration, and accounting for priority payments are required (s.4; Schedule).  \n- Bureaucratic discretion is limited by the Act’s specific payment priorities and the requirement that Trusts act \"under the direction of the Bishop in Council\" when deciding capital uses (Schedule). That wording preserves episcopal-led governance but constrains unilateral corporate action by a single Trust.  \n\n**Short takeaway\n\nThis is a narrowly focused, property‑specific statute that (1) removes older rules from applying to the listed St. James' parcels, (2) gives the Melbourne Trust Corporation express powers to transact those parcels subject to multi‑diocesan consents, (3) vests parcels now physically in other dioceses in those dioceses’ Trusts, and (4) prescribes a ranked set of recipients and uses for capital and income proceeds (s.2–4; Schedule)."},"summary":{"complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Based on available information, the Act appears to have remained in its original form as made, with no evident amendments broadening or narrowing its scope. It continues to apply to the specific church land it was originally enacted to address."},"complexity_factors":["Extremely narrow and specific subject matter — applies to a single parcel or set of parcels of church land","Historical legislation with limited available text making full analysis difficult","May interact with broader Victorian church property and land title laws, requiring cross-referencing","Age of the Act (1906) means terminology and legal concepts may differ from modern usage"],"plain_english_summary":"A 1906 Victorian Act governing the ownership and management of land associated with St. James' Church. It applies mainly to the church, its trustees or administrators, and anyone with a legal interest in the specific parcel.\n\nBecause the Act remains in force, it can still affect how that church land may be used, sold, or transferred — check it when handling transactions or administration."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906","history":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906/history","analysis":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/st-james-church-land-act-1906/documents"}}