Holder in due course

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In commercial law, a holder in due course (HDC) is someone who takes a negotiable instrument in a value-for-value exchange without reason to doubt that the instrument will be paid. If the instrument is later found not to be payable as written, a holder in due course can enforce payment by the person who originated it and all previous holders, regardless of any competing claims those parties may have against each other. This right shields a holder in due course from the risk of taking instruments without full knowledge of their history.

Contents

Rights

The rights of a holder in due course of a negotiable instrument are qualitatively, as matters of law, superior to those provided by ordinary species of contracts:

Limitations

The rule can be considered inequitable to consumers. As a response to this, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission promulgated Rule 433, formally known as the "Trade Regulation Rule Concerning Preservation of Consumers' Claims and Defenses", which "effectively abolished the [holder in due course] doctrine in consumer credit transactions". [3] In 2012, the FTC reaffirmed the regulation. [4]

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References

  1. UCC   § 3-306
  2. UCC   § 3-602(b)
  3. Commercial Paper: Holder in Due Course & Defenses Archived 2012-11-28 at the Wayback Machine .
  4. "FTC Opinion Letter Affirms Consumers' Rights under the Holder Rule". 2012-05-14. Archived from the original on 2012-05-14. Retrieved 2019-05-22.