The following applies where a person engaged in any business makes a general assignment to another person of his existing or future book debts, or any class of them, and is subsequently made bankrupt.
The assignment is void against the trustee of the bankrupt's estate as regards book debts which were not paid before the making of the bankruptcy application or (as the case may be) the presentation of the bankruptcy petition, unless the assignment has been registered under the Bills of Sale Act 1878.
For the purposes of subsections (1) and (2)—
For the purposes of registration under the Act of 1878 an assignment of book debts is to be treated as if it were a bill of sale given otherwise than by way of security for the payment of a sum of money; and the provisions of that Act with respect to the registration of bills of sale apply accordingly with such necessary modifications as may be made by rules under that Act.