Forensic audit stressed importance of separating Deeds, Commercial registries

The importance of the Deeds Registry and Com-mercial Registry being physically separated was one of the key findings of a forensic audit done last year of the registries.

Separation of the two registries had long been urged by attorney at law Leon Rockcliffe in a series of letters to this newspaper and it was only in January this year that a Registrar of Commerce was appointed and more spacious accommodation found for the registries in the old NBS building on High Street. The forensic audit and its report pre-dated the move to the old NBS building in January and several of its recommendations have already been implemented.

The forensic audit review of the registries posted on the Ministry of Finance’s website on Thursday said that when the Deeds and Commercial Registries Authority Act 2013 came into force it was expected that physically separate registries would be established to “enable accountable, accurate and efficient processing, recording, archiving and retrieval of vital land and commercial transactions.” Up to the point the forensic audit had been done the