| a) | Every magistrate and every other person appointed for the purpose by the Master or the Court shall be a commissioner for the purpose of taking evidence or holding any enquiry under this Act in connection with the winding-up of any company. |
| b) | The Master or the Court may refer the whole or any part of the examination of any witness or of any enquiry under this Act to any such commissioner, whether or not he is within the jurisdiction of the Court which issued the winding-up order. |
| c) | The Master, if he has not himself been appointed under paragraph (a), the liquidator or any creditor, member or contributory of the company may be represented at such an examination or enquiry by an attorney, with or without counsel, who shall be entitled to interrogate any witness: Provided that a commissioner shall disallow any question which is irrelevant or would in his opinion prolong the interrogation unnecessarily. |
| d) | The provisions of section 417(1A), (2)(b) and (5) shall apply mutatis mutandis in respect of such an examination or enquiry. |
| 2) | A commissioner shall in any matter referred to him have the same powers of summoning and examining witnesses and of requiring the production of documents, as the Master who or the Court which appointed him, and if the commissioner is a magistrate, of punishing defaulting or recalcitrant witnesses, or causing defaulting witnesses to be apprehended, and of determining questions relating to any lien with regard to documents, as the Court referred to in section 417. |
| a) | has been appointed by the Master, he shall, in such manner as the Master may direct, report to the Master, or |
| b) | has been appointed by the Court, he shall, in such manner as the Court may direct, report to the Master and the Court, on any examination or enquiry referred to him. |
| 4) | Any witness who has given evidence before the Master or the Court under section 417 or before a commissioner under this section, shall be entitled, at his cost, to a copy of the record of his evidence. |
| a) | has been duly summoned under this section by a commissioner who is not a magistrate and who fails, without sufficient cause, to attend at the time and place specified in the summons; or |
| b) | has been duly summoned under section 417(1) by the Master or under this section by a commissioner who is not a magistrate and who- |
| i) | fails, without sufficient cause, to remain in attendance until excused by the Master or such commissioner, as the case may be, from further attendance; |
| ii) | refuses to be sworn or to affirm as a witness; or |
| iii) | fails, without sufficient cause- |
| aa) | to answer fully and satisfactorily any question lawfully put to him in terms of section 417(2) or this section; or |
| bb) | to produce books or papers in his custody or under his control which he was required to produce in terms of section 417(3) or this section, |
shall be guilty of an offence.
