Secured Transactions/Creditors Remedies – 6109

Fall 2020
James Baillie

The larger part of this course is about Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code (“UCC”), probably the most significant commercial statute in the world. Article 9 governs transactions in which a borrower borrows money from a lender and gives that lender an interest in some of the borrower’s property as collateral to make the lender more secure in its chances of repayment. Transactions large and small are covered by Article 9: whether a person borrows money to buy a car, a manufacturer borrows money to buy its raw materials, a department store chain borrows money to purchase its inventory or a credit card issuer sells its receivables to investors, Article 9 applies. Secured transactions are a central importance to consumer and commercial loans, mergers and acquisitions, securitizations and to bankruptcy.

Article 9 was revised in 2001, and the revision added considerable complexity to the statute. Revised Article 9 is said to be drafted by experts for experts. It is hard to read. So part of the course will involve statutory interpretation. Article 9 was revised again in 2010 to smooth out wrinkles that arose from the 2001 amendments.

During this course we will also address the remedies of unsecured creditors. Time permitting, we will review statutes and procedures on levies of execution, attachment, garnishment, replevin, and receiverships. We will also address the exemptions and procedural rights available to the debtors. 

Finally, we will discuss the public policy issues raised by the thorough hegemony of secured credit in the larger economy.