Sales and Leases | 118
it aside. Title is void, by contrast, if the law treats it as though it never existed in the first place. The classic example of void title arises if a thief steals the goods. The thief has void title—that is, no title at all—so a thief cannot transfer any form of title to anyone, even a good-faith purchaser for value. Title is generally rendered voidable, by contrast, in the four circumstances listed in Power to Transfer if One Has Voidable Title to Goods, supra . Voidable title uniformly requires, at the very least, a voluntary transfer of possession to the seller. Thus, here again, a thief acquires no title and can transfer no title. Good title, of course, is title that is neither voidable nor void. [ See Ryan v. Patterson & Son Motors , 726 So.2d 667 (Ala. Ct. Civ. App. 1998); Void, Voidable, Black’s Law Dictionary (11th ed. 2019); 2 Hawkland UCC Series §§ 2-403:2, 2-403:3, Westlaw (database updated June 2021).] Deceit as to the Purchaser’s Identity Generally, a purchaser acquires voidable title if she deceives the transferor as to her own identity. Before Article 2’s enactment, courts distinguished between face-to-face deception and deception from a distance ( e.g. , deception over the phone). The former gave rise to voidable title, while the latter did not. Now, under Article 2, either type of deception gives rise to voidable title. [ See U.C.C. § 2-403(1)(a) (1951); 2 Hawkland UCC Series § 2-403:3, Westlaw (database updated June 2021).] Example : An impostor, falsely representing himself to be a local restauranteur, purchased a car from a man using a check on which the restauranteur’s signature was forged. The impostor then sold the car to a dealership, a good-faith purchaser for value. Though the impostor acquired the car through deception as to his identity, the man did voluntarily transfer the car to the impostor. Thus, the impostor acquired voidable title to the car and, therefore, could transfer good title to the dealership. [ See Charles Evans BMW, Inc. v. Williams , 395 S.E.2d 650 (Ga. Ct. App. 1990).] Payment by Dishonored Check Generally, if someone pays for goods by check, and the check is later dishonored, she acquires voidable title. In the UCC, payment by check is conditional. If the check is later dishonored, payment is deemed never to have occurred. Even so, one who pays for goods by dishonored check may transfer good title to a good-faith purchaser for value. [ See U.C.C. § 2-403(1)(b) (1951); 2 Hawkland UCC Series § 2-403:3, Westlaw (database updated June 2021).]
CashSale In a cash sale, the transferor intends that the purchaser acquire no title in the goods
Made with FlippingBook - Online Brochure Maker