In re Smith, 26931.
| Decision Date | 11 June 1962 |
| Docket Number | No. 26931.,26931. |
| Citation | 205 F. Supp. 27 |
| Parties | In the Matter of John W. SMITH and Mary Ann Smith, individually and jointly, Bankrupt. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania |
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, by Alan L. Reed, Philadelphia, Pa., for petitioner.
Rhoda, Stoudt & Bradley, by D. Frederick Muth, Reading, Pa., for trustee.
On December 8, 1960, petitioner and bankrupts entered into a conditional sales contract in connection with the purchase by the Smiths of certain equipment. On August 28, 1961, the Smiths filed a voluntary petition in bankruptcy and were adjudged bankrupt on that date. No installments had been paid on the conditional sales contract; therefore, the bankrupts are in default to the petitioner in the sum of $8,184.00.
The petitioner attempted to reclaim the equipment covered by the conditional sales contract from the trustee in bankruptcy. The Referee held that the equipment formed a part of the bankrupt estate on the ground that the petitioner had never perfected its security interest in the equipment because it had failed to file a financing statement with the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth as required by the Pennsylvania Uniform Commercial Code. (12A Purdon's Stat. § 9-401(1) (c), 1961 Supp.). A trustee in bankruptcy takes priority over unperfected security interests in property of the bankrupt. (12A Purdon's Stat. § 9-301, 1961 Supp.).
This is a review of the Referee's Order. Petitioner contends that the Referee erred in holding that the security interest was not perfected, and in holding that petitioner's good faith attempt to perfect the interest did not entitle petitioner to prevail over the trustee in any event.
First, it is argued that the presentation for filing of the conditional sales contract, together with the filing fee, to the Secretary of the Commonwealth constituted "filing" as defined by the Code. Therefore, even though the conditional sales contract was returned by the office of the Secretary to petitioner and was never resubmitted for filing in that office, petitioner contends that the filing was accomplished by the original presentation. The facts surrounding the attempted filing are not in dispute. The conditional sales contract did not contain the mailing address of the debtor (as required by section 9-402 of the Code.) It was returned to petitioner with a letter suggesting that an enclosed form of financing statement be filled out, since the small size contracts easily became lost in the files. The letter also stated that no mailing address for the debtor could be found. Petitioner states in its brief that it attempted to have the new financing statement signed by the debtors, but that it never succeeded in so doing, and for that reason the financing statement never resubmitted for filing.
The Pennsylvania Uniform Commercial Code requires that a security interest in equipment be filed in both the office of the Prothonotary for the county in which the debtor does business, and in the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. (12A Purdon's Stat. § 9-401(1) (c), 1961 Supp.). Although the conditional sales contract was accepted by the Prothonotary for Berks County, it was never actually filed with the office of the Secretary, as described above. Section 9—403 of the Code defines filing as follows:
"(1) Presentation for filing of a financing statement and tender of the filing fee or acceptance of the statement by the filing officer constitutes filing under this Article." (Emphasis supplied).
It is this section upon which petitioner relies in contending that the filing was accomplished by the original presentation of the conditional sales contract.
We think that this section does not apply in this case so as to render the petitioner's security interest perfected. Section 9-402 of the Code states that one of the formal requisites of financing statements is the inclusion therein of the mailing address of the debtor. That section also provides in subsection 5 that a financing statement "substantially complying" with the requirements of the section is effective. We think that a financing statement which does not contain the debtor's address does not...
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In re Komfo Products Corporation, 27055.
...of all the creditors of an otherwise unperfected security interest defeated the claim of a subsequent lien creditor. But Matter of Smith, 205 F.Supp. 27 (E.D. Pa., 1962); Matter of Luckenbill, 156 F.Supp. 129 (E.D.Pa., 1957); and Matter of Leiby, Bky. No. 26455, E.D.Pa., Jan. 29, 1962, all ......
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In re L & K Transp. Co., Inc.
...security interest ineffective as against a hypothetical lien creditor, see In Re Lindley, 12 UCC Rep. 757 (D.C.Ala.1973); In Re Smith, 205 F.Supp. 27 (E.D.Pa.1962); and Cushman Sales and Service, Inc. v. Muirhead, 201 Neb. 495, 268 N.W.2d 440 (1978). For cases contra, see Riley v. Miller, 5......
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Matter of Fowler
...that the omission of an address for a debtor will render a financing statement insufficient to perfect a security interest, In Re Smith, 205 F.Supp. 27 (E.D.Pa.1962), two other courts, including our Circuit in a case applying Wyoming law, (there does not appear to be an Oklahoma decision on......
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Home Savings Ass'n v. Southern Union Gas Co.
...directly in point, indicates the requirements of Code Section 9.402 as being mandatory in showing the debtor's address. In re Smith, 205 F.Supp. 27 (U.S.D.C.Pa.1962). In view of the Code provisions prior to the June 18, 1967 amendment whereby the only distinction between non-fixture and fix......