§ 25-7-210. Enforcement of warehouse's lien.
§ 25‑7‑210. Enforcement of warehouse's lien.
(a) Except as otherwiseprovided in subsection (b) of this section, a warehouse's lien may be enforcedby public or private sale of the goods, in bulk or in packages, at any time orplace and on any terms that are commercially reasonable, after notifying allpersons known to claim an interest in the goods. The notification must includea statement of the amount due, the nature of the proposed sale, and the timeand place of any public sale. The fact that a better price could have beenobtained by a sale at a different time or in a method different from thatselected by the warehouse is not of itself sufficient to establish that thesale was not made in a commercially reasonable manner. The warehouse sells in acommercially reasonable manner if the warehouse sells the goods in the usualmanner in any recognized market therefore, sells at the price current in thatmarket at the time of the sale, or otherwise sells in conformity withcommercially reasonable practices among dealers in the type of goods sold. Asale of more goods than apparently necessary to be offered to ensuresatisfaction of the obligation is not commercially reasonable, except in casescovered by the preceding sentence.
(b) A warehouse mayenforce its lien on goods, other than goods stored by a merchant in the courseof its business, only if the following requirements are satisfied:
(1) All persons known toclaim an interest in the goods must be notified.
(2) The notificationmust include an itemized statement of the claim, a description of the goodssubject to the lien, a demand for payment within a specified time not less than10 days after receipt of the notification, and a conspicuous statement thatunless the claim is paid within that time the goods will be advertised for saleand sold by auction at a specified time and place.
(3) The sale mustconform to the terms of the notification.
(4) The sale must beheld at the nearest suitable place to where the goods are held or stored.
(5) After the expirationof the time given in the notification, an advertisement of the sale must bepublished once a week for two weeks consecutively in a newspaper of generalcirculation where the sale is to be held. The advertisement must include adescription of the goods, the name of the person on whose account the goods arebeing held, and the time and place of the sale. The sale must take place atleast 15 days after the first publication. If there is no newspaper of generalcirculation where the sale is to be held, the advertisement must be posted atleast 10 days before the sale in not fewer than six conspicuous places in theneighborhood of the proposed sale.
(c) Before any salepursuant to this section, any person claiming a right in the goods may pay theamount necessary to satisfy the lien and the reasonable expenses incurred incomplying with this section. In that event, the goods may not be sold but mustbe retained by the warehouse subject to the terms of the receipt and thisArticle.
(d) A warehouse may buyat any public sale held pursuant to this section.
(e) A purchaser in goodfaith of goods sold to enforce a warehouse's lien takes the goods free of anyrights of persons against whom the lien was valid, despite the warehouse'snoncompliance with this section.
(f) A warehouse maysatisfy its lien from the proceeds of any sale pursuant to this section butshall hold the balance, if any, for delivery on demand to any person to whomthe warehouse would have been bound to deliver the goods.
(g) The rights providedby this section are in addition to all other rights allowed by law to acreditor against a debtor.
(h) If a lien is ongoods stored by a merchant in the course of its business, the lien may beenforced in accordance with subsection (a) or (b) of this section.
(i) A warehouse isliable for damages caused by failure to comply with the requirements for saleunder this section and, in case of willful violation, is liable for conversion.(Rev., ss. 3036to 3038, 3041; 1917, c. 37, ss. 32, 33, 35; C.S., ss. 4072, 4073, 4075; 1965,c. 700, s. 1; 2006‑112, s. 25.)