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FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
July 20, 2010
PUBLISH Elisabeth A. Shumaker
Clerk of Court
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
TENTH CIRCUIT
In re: ROBERT JAMES ROSER,
Debtor.
----------------------------
SOVEREIGN BANK,
Appellant,
v. No. 09-1341
DANIEL A. HEPNER, Chapter 7
Trustee,
Appellee.
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO
(D.C. NO. 1:08-CV-02313-WYD)
Matthew J. McGowan, Salter McGowan Sylvia & Leonard, Inc., Providence,
Rhode Island, for Appellant.
Joli A. Lofstedt, Connolly, Rosania & Lofstedt, P.C., Louisville, Colorado, for
Appellee.
Before TACHA, HOLLOWAY, and HARTZ, Circuit Judges.
HARTZ, Circuit Judge.
On May 19, 2007, Sovereign Bank gave Robert James Roser a secured loan
to purchase a motor vehicle, and he took possession of the vehicle that day.
Nineteen days later, on June 7, the Bank filed its lien in compliance with the
Colorado Certificate of Title Act (CCTA), Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 42-6-121 (2007).
Because the Colorado Uniform Commercial Code (Colorado UCC), which closely
tracks the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), gives priority over other security
interests to a purchase-money security interest that is filed within 20 days of the
purchaserās taking delivery of the collateral, see Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-317(e)
(2007), the Bank felt secure.
But there was a complication. On May 31 Roser filed a voluntary petition
under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court
for the District of Colorado. Relying on the prior opinion of the Bankruptcy
Appellate Panel for the Tenth Circuit (BAP) in In re OāNeill, 370 B.R. 332
(B.A.P. 10th Cir. 2007), the bankruptcy court held that the trustee in bankruptcy
(the Trustee) could avoid the Bankās lien, see 11 U.S.C. Ā§ 544(a) (authorizing
trustee to avoid certain liens). It noted that the CCTA supersedes the Colorado
UCC with respect to perfection of motor-vehicle liens and held that Colorado
UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) does not apply to the Bankās lien in this case. Because the
Bankās lien was not perfected before the filing of Roserās bankruptcy petition, the
court held that the Trusteeās interest is superior to the Bankās lien. The court
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added that the Bankās postpetition perfection of its lien violated the automatic
stay under 11 U.S.C. Ā§ 362(a). The district court affirmed.
The Bank appeals. See 28 U.S.C. Ā§ 158(d) (jurisdiction over bankruptcy
appeals from the district courts). Rejecting OāNeill, we reverse. OāNeill
misconstrued Colorado law. The CCTA does not supersede Colorado UCC
Ā§ 4-9-317(e) because the provision does not govern the manner or timing of the
perfection of liens. It governs only the priority of a lien and is not inconsistent
with the CCTA. As a generally applicable law, Ā§ 4-9-317(e) gave the lien of the
Bank priority over the Trusteeās interest in Roserās vehicle. And the automatic
stay did not prohibit the Bank from its postpetition perfection of its lien under the
CCTA because such perfection is excepted from the stay by 11 U.S.C.
Ā§ 362(b)(3).
I. DISCUSSION
āOur review of the bankruptcy courtās decision is governed by the same
standards of review that govern the district courtās review of the bankruptcy
court.ā In re Charles, 323 F.3d 841, 842 (10th Cir. 2003) (internal quotation
marks omitted). Because this case presents no disputed factual issues but only
matters of law, our review is de novo. See id.
A. Priority of Interests
The Bankruptcy Code gives the bankruptcy trustee the rights and powers of
a hypothetical person who acquired a judicial lien on the debtorās property at the
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time that the bankruptcy petition was filed. See 11 U.S.C. Ā§ 544(a). 1 He can
avoid any lien inferior to his interest in an asset of the bankruptcy estate. See In
re Haberman, 516 F.3d 1207, 1210 (10th Cir. 2008) (trustee has āthe power to
avoid any transfer or obligation that a hypothetical creditor with an unsatisfied
judicial lien on the debtorās property could avoid under relevant state
nonbankruptcy law.ā). In general, the trustee can avoid liens that are unperfected
when the petition for bankruptcy is filed. See In re Charles, 323 F.3d at 842. But
in some circumstances a lien that is perfected after the bankruptcy filing may
nevertheless have priority. Under Ā§ 546(b) of the Bankruptcy Code a trusteeās
avoidance rights āare subject to any generally applicable law that . . . permits
perfection of an interest in property to be effective against an entity that acquires
rights in such property before the date of perfection.ā 11 U.S.C. Ā§ 546(b)(1)(A).
The term generally applicable law ārelates to those provisions of applicable law
that apply both in bankruptcy cases and outside of bankruptcy cases.ā S. Rep.
1
11 U.S.C. Ā§ 544(a)(1) provides in full:
(a) The trustee shall have, as of the commencement of the case,
and without regard to any knowledge of the trustee or of any
creditor, the rights and powers of, or may avoid any transfer of
property of the debtor or any obligation incurred by the debtor that is
voidable byā
(1) a creditor that extends credit to the debtor at the time of
the commencement of the case, and that obtains, at such time
and with respect to such credit, a judicial lien on all property
on which a creditor on a simple contract could have obtained
such a judicial lien, whether or not such a creditor exists.
-4-
No. 95-989, at 86 (1978), as reprinted in 1978 U.S.C.C.A.N. 5787; see Makoroff
v. City of Lockport, 916 F.2d 890, 892 (3d Cir. 1990); 5 Collier on Bankruptcy
Ā¶ 546.03[2][a], at 546-23 (Lawrence P. King ed., 15th ed. rev. 2006). The
applicable law in this case is the law of Colorado. See In re Charles, 323 F.3d at
842ā43.
The Bank presents a straightforward argument why its lien would have
priority under Colorado law over a lien of a judgment creditor who obtained
judgment at the time Roser filed for bankruptcy. Under the Colorado UCC:
[I]f a person [1] files a financing statement [2] with respect to a
purchase-money security interest [3] before or within twenty days
after the debtor receives delivery of the collateral, the security
interest takes priority over the rights of a buyer, lessee, or lien
creditor which arise between the time the security interest attaches
and the time of filing.
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-317(e) (2007). (As discussed below, this section was
amended after Roser filed his petition.) There is no doubt that the Bank satisfied
the requirements of this section. The filing of a lien under the CCTA constitutes
the filing of a financing statement. See Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-311(b)
(āCompliance with the requirements of a [certificate-of-title statute] is equivalent
to the filing of a financing statement.ā). 2 And there is no dispute that the Bank
2
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-311 (2007) states in pertinent part:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section
[relating to inventory], the filing of a financing statement is not
necessary or effective to perfect a security interest in property
(continued...)
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complied on June 7, 2007, with the requirements for filing a motor-vehicle lien
under the CCTA. See id. Ā§ 42-6-121 (2007). Nor is there any dispute that the
Bank held a purchase-money security interest in Roserās vehicle. See id.
Ā§ 4-9-103(a) & (b) (defining purchase-money security interest). Thus, because
2
(...continued)
subject to:
....
(2) A certificate-of-title statute of this state covering
automobiles or other goods, which provides for a
security interest to be indicated on the certificate as a
condition or result of perfection of the security interest;
....
(b) Compliance with the requirements of a statute, regulation, or
treaty described in subsection (a) of this section for obtaining
priority over the rights of a lien creditor is equivalent to the filing of
a financing statement under this article. Except as otherwise
provided in subsection (d) of this section [relating to inventory] and
sections 4-9-313 and 4-9-316(d) and (e) [relating to (1) perfection by
possession by or delivery to secured party and (2) initial perfection
in another jurisdiction] for goods covered by a certificate of title, a
security interest in property subject to a statute, regulation, or treaty
described in subsection (a) of this section may be perfected only by
compliance with those requirements, and a security interest so
perfected remains perfected notwithstanding a change in the use or
transfer of possession of the collateral.
(c) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (d) of this section and
section 4-9-316(d) and (e), duration and renewal of perfection of a
security interest perfected by compliance with the requirements
prescribed by a statute, regulation, or treaty described in subsection
(a) of this section are governed by the statute, regulation, or treaty.
In other respects, the security interest is subject to this article.
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the Bank filed its lien within 20 days of Roserās obtaining the vehicle, it contends
that Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) gives its lien a priority over any rights in the
vehicleāincluding the Trusteeās interest as a hypothetical judicial-lien
creditorāthat arose between the time that the Bankās security interest attached
(May 19, 2007, when it closed the loan) and its CCTA filing on June 7.
The Trustee argues, however, that we should follow the holding of the BAP
in OāNeill. Although there were complications in OāNeill not present in this case,
the BAP ultimately held that the bankruptcy trustee could avoid a purchase-
money security interest in an automobile that had been filed under the CCTA
within 20 days of the purchase but after the purchaser had filed for bankruptcy.
See OāNeill, 370 B.R. at 333ā34. The BAP reasoned that Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-
317(e) does not apply to liens perfected under the CCTA. See id. at 337ā38. As
did the BAP in OāNeill, the Trustee relies on the following sentence in the CCTA:
āExcept as provided in this section, the provisions of the āUniform Commercial
Code,ā title 4, Colo. Rev. Stat., relating to the filing, recording, releasing,
renewal, and extension of chattel mortgages, as the term is defined in section
42-6-102(9), shall not apply to motor vehicles.ā Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 42-6-120(1)
(2007).
We do not read CCTA Ā§ 42-6-120(1) as broadly as OāNeill did. To be sure,
the CCTA provides its own distinct methods for filing, recording, and perfecting
motor-vehicle liens, see Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 42-6-121, releasing such liens, see id.
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Ā§ 42-6-125, and extending them, see id. Ā§ 42-6-127. It thus clearly supersedes the
Colorado UCC with respect to those procedural matters regarding motor-vehicle
liens. But the subject matter of Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) is not encompassed
within the procedural matters preempted by Ā§ 42-6-120(1): āfiling, recording,
releasing, renewal, and extensionā of liens. Indeed, the Colorado UCC adopts the
CCTAās own methods for filing, recording, releasing, renewing, or extending
liens. See id. Ā§Ā§ 4-9-311(b) (compliance with requirements of a certificate-of-
title statute constitutes filing of a financing statement for purposes of Colorado
UCC), 4-9-311(c) (similarly incorporating rules for duration and renewal of
perfection of security interest). Accordingly, in applying the Colorado UCC, the
date of perfection for a properly filed motor-vehicle lien is established by the
CCTA. What Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) does is then govern the priority of the
rights of creditors in light of that perfection date. Here, for example, the
perfection date under the CCTA was June 7, 2007. Given that perfection date,
Ā§ 4-9-317(e) states that the Bankās lien had priority over rights of other lien
creditorsāsuch as the Trusteeāthat arose after Roser acquired his vehicle on
May 19, 2007.
The Trusteeās three arguments to the contrary are not persuasive. First, he
argues that the supersession of Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) by the CCTA is clear
from another CCTA provision, Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 42-6-130 (2007), which states:
-8-
The liens or mortgages filed for record or noted on a certificate of
title to a motor vehicle, as provided in section 42-6-121, shall take
priority in the same order that they were filed in the office of the
authorized agent.
But any supersession of the priority provisions of the Colorado UCC by this
provision can only be partial. We recognize that CCTA Ā§ 42-6-130 establishes
priority among liens filed under the CCTA. Perhaps it even overrides Colorado
UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) when a purchase-money security interest is filed under the
CCTA after another lien is filed under the CCTA (a matter we need not resolve).
But Ā§ 42-6-130 says nothing about the priority of a lien filed under the CCTA
relative to interests in a motor vehicle not perfected under the CCTA (such as a
judgment lien), which is the issue confronting us. We think it unlikely that the
legislature intended to create a legal limbo in that situation. The obvious
inference is that the priorities under the Colorado UCC, including Ā§ 4-9-317(e),
would govern. Cf. id. Ā§ 4-9-311(c) (āIn other respects, the security interest
[perfected under a certificate-of-title statute] is subject to this article.ā).
Second, the Trustee claims that the official commentary to the UCC
supports his contention that Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) does not apply to liens
filed under the CCTA. As we understand his argument, it derives from the
following passage in OāNeill:
The UCC drafters . . . recognized that relation back provisions in
titling laws could engender uncertainty to the extent they were
inconsistent with, or exclusive of, the relation back provisions in
Article 9. In further commentary, the drafters wrote:
-9-
Under some certificate-of-title statutes, including the
Uniform Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-
Theft Act, perfection generally occurs upon delivery of
specified documents to a state official but may, under
certain circumstances, relate back to the time of
attachment. This relation-back feature can create great
difficulties for the application of the rules in Sections 9-
303 [relating to time that goods are covered by a
jurisdictionās certificate-of-title statute] and 9-311(b).
Accordingly, the Legislative Note also recommends to
legislatures that they remove any relation-back
provisions from certificate-of-title statutes affecting
security interests.
OāNeill, 370 B.R. at 337ā38 (quoting UCC Ā§ 9-311 cmt. 5). OāNeill apparently
read the comment as recommending that states exclude relation-back provisions
like Ā§ 4-9-317(e) from applying to liens governed by certificate-of-title statutes.
But that reading would be mistaken.
To begin with, the first paragraph of the UCC comment explicitly states
that the consequences of perfection are governed by UCC Article 9 even if the
manner of perfection is set forth in another statute. The first paragraph states in
full:
Subsection (b) [of Ā§ 9-311] makes clear that compliance with the
perfection requirements (i.e., the requirements for obtaining priority
over a lien creditor), but not other requirements, of a statute,
regulation, or treaty described in subsection (a) [of Ā§ 9-311, which
describes, among other things, certificate-of-title statutes] is
sufficient for perfection under this Article. Perfection of a security
interest under such a statute, regulation, or treaty has all the
consequences of perfection under this Article.
UCC Ā§ 9-311 cmt. 5 (emphasis added).
-10-
Moreover, the paragraph of comment 5 quoted by OāNeill is not speaking
of UCC priority provisions such as Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) when it criticizes,
and recommends repeal of, ārelation-back provisions from certificate-of-title
statutes affecting security interests,ā U.C.C. Ā§ 9-311 cmt. 5. Rather, the concern
is with provisions that deem the perfection date to be one before actual
perfection. This is made clear by the commentās reference to the provision of the
Uniform Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-Theft Act 3 that permits
perfection to ārelate back to the time of attachment.ā UCC Ā§ 9-311 cmt. 5. This
provision states:
A security interest is perfected by the delivery to the Department of
the existing certificate of title, if any, an application for a certificate
of title containing the name and address of the lienholder and the
date of his security agreement and the required fee [and registration
card]. It is perfected as of the time of its creation if the delivery is
completed within ten (10) days thereafter, otherwise as of the time of
delivery.
Unif. Motor Vehicle Certificate of Title and Anti-Theft Act Ā§ 20(b), Selected
Commercial Statutes at 1241 (West 2009) (alteration in original, emphasis added).
Section 4-9-317(e), in contrast, does not reset the date of perfection; instead it
gives some security interests priority over earlier-perfected security interests. A
relation-back provision of the sort addressed in the comment may have some
consequences similar to those caused by Ā§ 4-9-317(e); but the manner in which
3
In 1978 the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws
withdrew this uniform act as obsolete. 11 U.L.A.199 (2003).
-11-
such a provision interacts with provisions of the UCC that are based on the actual
date of perfection can cause unintended consequences to the carefully crafted
scheme of the UCC. See UCC Ā§ 9-311 cmt. 5 (āThis relation-back feature can
create great difficulties for the application of the rules in Sections 9-303 and
9-311(b).ā). The comment is not suggesting that certain UCC provisions not
apply in the context of certificate-of-title statutes. It is stating that provisions in
certificate-of-title statutes that reset the perfection date may create problems
when applying UCC Article 9 (which, the comment observes, generally governs
liens filed under such statutes) and therefore should be repealed.
The Trusteeās third argument for supersession of Colorado UCC
Ā§ 4-9-17(e) by the CCTA is based on statutory amendments enacted in response to
OāNeill (but too late to help the Bank in this case). The Colorado legislature
amended the Colorado UCC and the CCTA to provide expressly that Ā§ 4-9-317(e)
applies in the motor-vehicle context, effective for liens filed after April 22, 2009.
See 2009 Colo. Legis. Serv. Ch. 182 (S.B. 09-150), sec. 5. 4 There would be no
4
The Colorado legislature enacted the following amendments (additions are
emphasized):
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-317(e): Except as otherwise provided in sections 4-9-320
and 4-9-321, if a person files a financing statement with respect to a
purchase-money security interest before or within twenty days after the debtor
receives delivery of the collateral, or if a person perfects under article 6 of title
42, C.R.S., a purchase-money security interest in a motor vehicle, other than
inventory, before or within thirty days after the debtor receives delivery of the
motor vehicle, the security interest takes priority over the rights of a buyer,
(continued...)
-12-
need for these amendments, the Trustee claims, if Ā§ 4-9-317(e) had previously
been applicable. But these amendments do not confirm the Trusteeās
4
(...continued)
lessee, or lien creditor which arise between the time the security interest attaches
and the time of filing.
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-9-324(a): Except as otherwise provided in subsection (g) of
this section, a perfected purchase-money security interest in goods other than
inventory or livestock has priority over a conflicting security interest in the same
goods, and, except as otherwise provided in section 4-9-327, a perfected security
interest in its identifiable proceeds also has priority, if the purchase-money
security interest is perfected when the debtor receives possession of the collateral
or within twenty days thereafter, or, if the collateral is a motor vehicle, as
defined in section 42-6-102, C.R.S., within thirty days thereafter.
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 4-6-120(1): (1) Except as provided in this section and section
42-6-130, the provisions of the āUniform Commercial Codeā, title 4, C.R.S.,
relating to the filing, recording, releasing, renewal, priority, and extension of
chattel mortgages, as the term is defined in section 42-6-102(9), shall not apply to
motor vehicles. Any mortgage or refinancing of a mortgage intended by the
parties to the mortgage or refinancing to encumber or create a lien on a motor
vehicle, or to be perfected as a valid lien against the rights of third persons,
purchasers for value without notice, mortgagees, or creditors of the owner, shall
be filed for public record. The fact of filing shall be noted on the owner's
certificate of title or bill of sale substantially in the manner provided in section
42-6-121.
Colo. Rev. Stat. Ā§ 42-6-130: The liens or mortgages filed for record or noted on a
certificate of title to a motor vehicle, as provided in section 42-6-121, shall take
priority in the same order that they were filed in the office of the authorized
agent; except that the priority of a purchase-money security interest, as defined in
section 4-9-103, C.R.S., shall be determined in accordance with sections
4-9-317(e) and 4-9-324(a), C.R.S.
The legislature also added a subsection (subsection 4) to Colo. Rev. Stat.
Ā§ 42-6-120. That subsection states: āThe rights of a buyer, lessee, or lien creditor
that arise after a mortgage attaches to a motor vehicle and before perfection under
this article shall be determined by section 4-9-317, C.R.S.ā
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interpretation of the pre-amendment law, which applies here. Even if the post-
OāNeill legislature thought that OāNeill had been decided correctly, a later
legislature cannot change the meaning of a statute; it can only amend the statute.
Its view of OāNeillās interpretation of the prior statute would not be dispositive,
or even particularly persuasive. See Consumer Prod. Safety Commān v. GTE
Sylvania, Inc., 447 U.S. 102, 117ā18 (1980) (cautioning that āthe views of a
subsequent Congress form a hazardous basis for inferring the intent of an earlier
oneā (internal quotation marks omitted)). And, in any event, it would be
speculating to say that the legislatureās response to OāNeill was an endorsement
of OāNeillās interpretation. The Trustee does not explain how the legislature
would have acted differently if it had disagreed with how OāNeill read the prior
statute.
Thus, Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) is not superseded by the CCTA, and the
Bankās lien would have priority over a hypothetical judgment lien obtained on
May 31, 2007. Because the Trustee has not disputed that Ā§ 4-9-317(e) applies in
nonbankruptcy cases, the provision is āgenerally applicable lawā within the
meaning of Ā§ 546(b)(1)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code and governs the dispute
before us. See 5 Collier on Bankruptcy Ā¶ 546.03[2][a], at 546-22 to 546-23
(noting that UCC Ā§ 9-317(e) is āgenerally applicable lawā under Ā§ 546 of the
Bankruptcy Code). The Trustee cannot avoid the Bankās lien.
-14-
B. Automatic Stay in Bankruptcy
Finally, because the Bank filed its lien after Roser filed his Chapter 7
petition, the Trustee argues that the Bankās perfection violated the automatic stay
in bankruptcy and was ineffective. We disagree.
Section 362(a) of the Bankruptcy Code provides for an automatic stay of a
number of actions immediately upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition under any
chapter of the Code. See generally 3 Collier on Bankruptcy Ā¶ 362.03 (discussing
the scope of the stay). In particular, Ā§ 362(a)(4) provides for the automatic stay
of āany act to create, perfect, or enforce any lien against the property of the
estate.ā
Excepted from the automatic stay, however, is āany act to perfect, or to
maintain or continue the perfection of, an interest in property to the extent that
the trusteeās rights and powers are subject to such perfection under section 546(b)
of this title.ā 11 U.S.C. Ā§ 362(b)(3); see 5 Collier on Bankruptcy Ā¶ 546.03[5], at
546-28. Section 546(b) states in pertinent part: āThe rights and powers of a
trustee under section[] 544 . . . of this title are subject to any generally applicable
law that . . . permits perfection of an interest in property to be effective against an
entity that acquires rights in the property before the date of perfection.ā
11 U.S.C. Ā§ 362(b)(1)(A). Colorado UCC Ā§ 4-9-317(e) is such a law; it permits
perfection of a purchase-money security interest to be effective against interests
acquired before the date of perfection. See 3 Collier on Bankruptcy Ā¶ 362.05[4],
-15-
at 362-54 to 54.1 (postpetition perfection under UCC Ā§ 9-317(e) is āeffective
against the trustee under section 546(b)ā and thus not subject to the automatic
stay); cf. In re Lockridge, 303 B.R. 449, 456ā57 (Bankr. D. Ariz. 2003) (although
Ā§ 362(b)(3) may prevent automatic stay from applying to postpetition perfection
under UCC Ā§ 9-317(e), debtor nevertheless entitled to automatic stay because
creditor failed to perfect its interest within Ā§ 4-9-317(e)ās 20-day time limit). The
perfection of the Bankās purchase-money security interest did not violate the
automatic stay.
II. CONCLUSION
We REVERSE the judgment of the district court and REMAND for further
proceedings consistent with this opinion.
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