NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
WAREHOUSEMEN'S LIENS ACT 1969
As in force at 3 March 2023
Table of provisions
1 Short title ......................................................................................... 1
2 Commencement .............................................................................. 1
3 Definitions ........................................................................................ 1
4 Declaration of warehouseman's lien ................................................ 1
5 Charges covered by the lien ............................................................ 1
6 Necessity of notice by warehouseman ............................................ 2
7 Notice by person depositing goods.................................................. 3
8 Power to sell goods ......................................................................... 3
9 Payment of charges before sale ...................................................... 4
10 No action by reason of sale ............................................................. 5
11 Disposition of proceeds of sale ........................................................ 5
12 Service of notices ............................................................................ 6
13 Notice – substantial compliance ...................................................... 6
15 Certain liens, rights, &c., not to be affected by Act .......................... 7
16 Sales otherwise prohibited are not authorized by Act ...................... 7
17 Auction to be held by licensed person ............................................. 7
ENDNOTES
NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
As in force at 3 March 2023
WAREHOUSEMEN'S LIENS ACT 1969
An Act to amend the law relating to the warehousing of goods
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969.
2 Commencement
This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the
Administrator by notice in the Gazette.
3 Definitions
In this Act unless the contrary intention appears:
PPS Act means the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth).
warehouseman means a person lawfully engaged in the business
of storing goods as a bailee for hire or reward.
4 Declaration of warehouseman's lien
Subject to the provisions of section 6 every warehouseman shall
have a lien on goods deposited with him for storage.
5 Charges covered by the lien
(1) The lien referred to in section 4 shall be for the amount of:
(a) all lawful charges of the warehouseman for storage and
preservation of the goods;
(b) all lawful claims of the warehouseman for insurance,
transportation, labour, weighing, packing, coopering and other
expenses in relation to the goods; and
(c) where default is made in satisfying the lien charged on the
goods by virtue of the preceding provisions of this subsection
all reasonable charges of the warehouseman for notice and
advertisement of an intended sale of the goods and, if the
goods are sold, for the sale of the goods.
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 2
(2) Where the charges referred to in paragraph (c) of subsection (1)
are incurred with respect to more than one item of goods, those
charges shall, with respect to any one item, be deemed to be an
amount that bears the same proportion to the total charges as the
amount of the lien charged on the item by virtue of the other
provisions of that subsection bears to the amount of the lien
charged on all the items by virtue of other provisions.
6 Necessity of notice by warehouseman
(1) The warehouseman must, within 3 months after the date of the
deposit of goods with the warehouseman, give notice of the lien on
the goods to a person if:
(a) the goods are of, or greater than, medium value as defined in
section 4 of the Uncollected Goods Act 2004; and
(b) one of the following applies:
(i) the person has an interest in the goods in relation to
which a registration was made under the PPS Act before
the deposit of the goods and the registration is in effect;
(ii) the person has an interest in the goods that the
warehouseman is aware of at any time before the
expiration of 2 months after the deposit of the goods.
(2) Notice of a lien on goods:
(a) shall be in writing; and
(b) shall contain:
(i) a brief description of the goods;
(ii) a statement showing the situation of the warehouse
where the goods are stored, the date of their deposit
with the warehouseman and the name of the person by
whom they were deposited; and
(iii) a statement that a lien is claimed by the warehouseman
in respect of the goods.
(3) Where the warehouseman fails to give the notice required by this
section, his lien, as against the person to whom he fails to give
notice, shall be void as from the expiration of the period of 3 months
from the date of the deposit of the goods.
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 3
7 Notice by person depositing goods
A person shall, on depositing goods with a warehouseman for
storage, give notice in writing to the warehouseman of the name,
and, if known, the address of every person whom the
first-mentioned person knows has an interest in the goods.
Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.
8 Power to sell goods
(1) In addition to all other remedies provided by law for the
enforcement of liens or for the recovery of warehousemen's
charges a warehouseman may sell by public auction any goods
upon which the warehouseman has a lien for charges which have
become due.
(2) The warehouseman must give written notice of the
warehouseman's intention to sell to the following:
(a) the person liable as debtor for the charges for which the lien
exists;
(b) any person who has served upon the warehouseman a notice
of a claim to be the owner of the goods or of some interest
therein or of whose interest the warehouseman has received
notice;
(c) any person who holds an interest in the goods that is
registered under any other Act and the existence of which is
ascertainable by ordinary search of the relevant registers
using the information known to the warehouseman;
(d) any other person of whose interest in the goods the
warehouseman has knowledge.
(3) The notice must contain:
(a) a brief description of the goods;
(b) a statement showing the situation of the warehouse where the
goods are stored, the date of their deposit with the
warehouseman and the name of the person by whom they
were deposited;
(c) an itemized statement of the warehouseman's charges
showing the sum due at the time of the notice;
(d) a demand that the amount of the charges as stated in the
notice and such further charges as may accrue be paid on or
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 4
before a day mentioned, not less than one month from the
delivery of the notice if it is personally delivered, or from the
time when the notice should reach its destination according to
the due course of post if it is sent by post; and
(e) a statement that unless the charges are paid within the time
mentioned the goods will be advertised for sale and sold by
public auction, or (as the case may require) by such method
and at a time and place specified in the notice.
(4) If the charges are not paid on or before the day mentioned in the
notice, an advertisement of the sale, describing the goods to be
sold, and stating the time and place of the sale, must be published
at least twice in a daily newspaper printed and published in the City
of Darwin and in a newspaper printed and published in the Town of
Alice Springs, the first publication appearing not less than 14 days
before the day of the sale and the second publication appearing not
less than 7 days after the first.
(5) The sale must be held not less than 14 days from the date of the
first publication of the advertisement.
(6) For the purpose of advertising in accordance with the provisions of
this section, the warehouseman may without liability for damage
take all reasonable steps (including the opening of sealed or closed
boxes or packages) to ascertain the nature and description of the
goods to be sold.
(7) If, pursuant to subsection (6), any box or package is opened the
same must be opened in the presence of 2 other persons who must
make, sign and verify by statutory declaration an inventory of the
contents thereof.
(8) The Local Court may, on the application of any person having any
interest in the goods made at any time after the service of the
notice, make an order staying further proceedings under this
section for such period and on such terms as it deems just.
(9) This section applies only to cases in which some part of the
charges in arrear are in respect of a period more than 12 months
prior to the date upon which the notice of intention to sell is given.
(10) For the purposes of a sale of goods under this section, the
warehouseman is taken to be the absolute owner of the goods.
9 Payment of charges before sale
(1) If, at any time before the goods are sold under section 8, a person
claiming an interest in, or a right of possession of, the goods or a
part of the goods pays to the warehouseman the amount necessary
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 5
to satisfy the warehouseman's lien on the goods or the part of the
goods to which the person's claim relates, as the case may be, no
further proceedings for the sale of the goods or the part of the
goods to which the person's claim relates, as the case may be,
shall be taken.
(2) If, after payment is made to satisfy a lien on goods, being payment
made in pursuance of subsection (1), the goods are left deposited
with the warehouseman for storage, the warehouseman shall be
deemed to retain the goods according to the terms of the original
contract of deposit.
(3) A person who, in pursuance of subsection (1), makes a payment to
satisfy a lien on goods for charges for which the person is not
primarily liable may recover the amount of the payment, together
with interest on that amount at the rate of 12% per annum
calculated from the date of payment, as a debt due to him from the
person primarily liable to pay the charges.
10 No action by reason of sale
No action lies against any person by reason of a sale of goods in
accordance with this Act.
11 Disposition of proceeds of sale
(1) A warehouseman shall pay into the Local Court so much, if any, of
the proceeds of a sale of goods made in pursuance of section 8 as
is not required to satisfy his lien on the goods.
Maximum penalty: 4 penalty units or imprisonment for
6 months.
(2) When making a payment into Court under subsection (1), a
warehouseman shall deliver to a registrar of the Local Court:
(a) a statement of account showing how the amount paid in has
been computed; and
(b) a copy of each notice of his intention to sell the goods given
by the warehouseman in pursuance of section 8.
Maximum penalty: 1.7 penalty units.
(3) Moneys paid into the Court under subsection (1) may, upon the
order of the Court, be applied as the Court thinks fit.
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 6
(4) Where the Court has not, within 12 months after the payment of
moneys into the Court under subsection (1), made an order with
respect to the moneys, the moneys shall be paid into the Central
Holding Authority.
12 Service of notices
(1) A notice by a warehouseman under this Act may be given to a
person:
(a) personally;
(b) by registered post addressed to the person at the last address
of the person known to the warehouseman; or
(c) where the warehouseman does not know an address of the
person – by an advertisement published twice in a daily
newspaper printed and published in the City of Darwin and in
a newspaper printed and published in the Town of Alice
Springs with an interval of at least 7 days between the
advertisements.
(2) A notice given by advertisement in accordance with paragraph (c)
of subsection (1) shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to
have been given on the date of the second publication of the
advertisement.
13 Notice – substantial compliance
Where:
(a) a notice of lien or a notice of intention to sell purports to have
been given under this Act but the provisions of this Act with
respect to the giving of the notice have not been strictly
complied with; and
(b) a court before which a question respecting the notice is tried
or inquired into considers that:
(i) those provisions have been substantially complied with;
or
(ii) it would be inequitable that the lien or sale should be
deemed to be void by the reason of non-compliance,
an objection to the sufficiency of the notice shall not be allowed to
prevail so as to release or discharge the goods from the lien or
vitiate the sale.
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 7
15 Certain liens, rights, &c., not to be affected by Act
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as abrogating, limiting or in
any manner affecting:
(a) any lien or power of sale or other right (whether arising under
contract or by operation of law) which a warehouseman may
have apart from this Act in respect of any goods stored by
him; or
(b) the enforcement of such lien or the exercise of any such
power or right.
16 Sales otherwise prohibited are not authorized by Act
(1) This Act does not authorize the sale by public auction by a
warehouseman of any goods if the sale by public auction of those
goods is prohibited by a law in force in the Territory.
(2) This Act does not authorize the sale by public auction by a
warehouseman of any goods if the sale by the warehouseman of
those goods is prohibited by any other law in force in the Territory.
17 Auction to be held by licensed person
An auction held in accordance with the provisions of this Act, shall
be conducted by a person who holds a licence granted and in force
under the Auctioneers Act 1935.
ENDNOTES
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 8
ENDNOTES
1 KEY
Key to abbreviations
amd = amended od = order
app = appendix om = omitted
bl = by-law pt = Part
ch = Chapter r = regulation/rule
cl = clause rem = remainder
div = Division renum = renumbered
exp = expires/expired rep = repealed
f = forms s = section
Gaz = Gazette sch = Schedule
hdg = heading sdiv = Subdivision
ins = inserted SL = Subordinate Legislation
lt = long title sub = substituted
nc = not commenced
2 LIST OF LEGISLATION
Warehouseman's Liens Ordinance 1969 (Act No. 59, 1969)
Assent date 10 December 1969
Commenced 7 January 1970 (Gaz No. 1, 7 January 1970)
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1973 (Act No. 87, 1973)
Assent date 11 December 1973
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 12(2))
Amending Legislation
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1974 (Act No. 34, 1974)
Assent date 26 August 1974
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3(2))
Ordinances Revision Ordinance (No. 2) 1974 (Act No. 69, 1974)
Assent date 24 October 1974
Commenced 11 December 1973 (s 3)
Ordinances Revision Ordinance 1976 (Act No. 27, 1976)
Assent date 28 June 1976
Commenced ss 1, 2 and 6: 28 June 1976 (s 6(2));
ss 3 and 4: 11 December 1973; s 5: 24 October 1974
Local Court (Consequential Amendments) Act 1989 (Act No. 14, 1989)
Assent date 5 June 1989
Commenced s 6: 5 June 1989; rem: 1 January 1991 (s 2, s 2 Small Claims
Amendment Act 1988 (Act No. 43, 1988), Gaz G17,
3 May 1989, p 2, s 2 Local Court Act 1989 (Act No. 31, 1989)
and Gaz G49, 12 December 1990, p 2)
Statute Law Revision Act 2008 (Act No. 6, 2008)
Assent date 11 March 2008
Commenced 11 March 2008
ENDNOTES
Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 9
Justice Legislation Amendment (Penalties) Act 2010 (Act No. 12, 2010)
Assent date 20 May 2010
Commenced 1 July 2010 (Gaz G24, 16 June 2010, p 2)
Personal Property Securities (National Uniform Legislation) Implementation Act 2010
(Act No. 30, 2010)
Assent date 9 September 2010
Commenced ss 58 to 60: 30 January 2012 (Gaz, S2, 24 January 2012);
rem: 25 November 2011 (Gaz,S68, 25 November 2011)
Local Court (Related Amendments) Act 2016 (Act No. 8, 2016)
Assent date 6 April 2016
Commenced 1 May 2016 (s 2, s 2 Local Court (Repeals and Related
Amendments) Act 2016 (Act No. 9, 2016) and Gaz S34,
29 April 2016)
Statute Law Revision Act 2023 (Act No. 4, 2023)
Assent date 2 March 2023
Commenced 3 March 2023 (s 2)
3 GENERAL AMENDMENTS
General amendments of a formal nature (which are not referred to in the table
of amendments to this reprint) are made by the Interpretation Legislation
Amendment Act 2018 (Act No. 22, 2018) to: ss 1, 6, 8 and 17.
4 LIST OF AMENDMENTS
s 3 amd No. 87, 1973, s 7; No. 14, 1989, s 7; No. 30, 2010, s 54
ss 4 – 5 amd No. 87, 1973, s 3
s 6 amd No. 87, 1973, ss 2 and 7; No. 30, 2010, s 54
s 7 amd No. 87, 1973, s 5; No. 14, 1989, s 7; No. 12, 2010, s 3
s 8 amd No. 87, 1973, ss 2, 3 and 7; No. 14, 1989, s 7; No. 4, 2023, s 23
s 9 amd No. 87, 1973, ss 2 and 3; No. 14, 1989, s 7
s 11 amd No. 87, 1973, ss 2, 3 and 5; No. 14, 1989, s 7; No. 6, 2008, s 3; No. 12,
2010, s 3; No. 8, 2016, s 45
s 12 amd No. 87, 1973, s 2
s 14 amd No. 87, 1973, s 3
rep No. 14, 1989, s 7
s 17 amd No. 87, 1973, s 7
Section 1 - Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 - Warehousemen's Liens Act 1969 | Zoe