Court Opinion

ID: 9419903
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-02 22:52:03.319787+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T16:42:17.474593
License: Public Domain

Mr. Justice Reed,
dissenting.
In my opinion the notices of lien caused to be duly recorded by Illinois on April 3, May 8 and May 20, 1942, *377with the Recorder of Deeds of Cook County, Illinois, perfected and made specific the state’s claim under its unemployment compensation statute. These notices named the creditor and gave his precise address. They stated the amount of the claim and asserted a lien for the aggregate sum upon all the personal property owned and used by the lienee in connection with its business. Under any view of chattel lien law, such a legally recorded instrument would create a lien in the lienor on the personal property owned and used by the taxpayer at his place of business superior to the rights of general creditors or subsequent innocent purchasers for value. This is true by statute in Illinois. Jones Ill. Stat. Ann. (1944) § 45.154 (b) (1), Unemployment Compensation Act of Illinois.
The Court deems that the lien attaches to specific and ascertainable property of the taxpayer only when the taxpayer files his schedule of property in proceedings to enforce the lien.1 I deem the recorded notice as the inci*378dent that consummates the lien upon the specific and ascertainable property. The enforcement proceedings after that recordation are only an enforcement of a lien already fixed upon the specific property adequately described in the recorded notice.
The Court suggests that the ruling in United States v. Texas, 314 U. S. 480, that the statutory lien on “property devoted to or used in his business” is not a specific and fixed lien entitled to priority over the United States, is persuasive that similar words in the Illinois statute are not specific and constant. But in the Texas case, no steps had been taken to fix the amount of the lien on the property devoted to the business, p. 487. Of course, therefore, the lien could not be fixed and certain. This final step to perfect the lien had been taken in the present case.
As the Court concludes no specific lien attaches to ascertainable property, I content myself with adding, as to the respective priorities of the United States and a lienor with a specific lien on ascertainable property, that in my opinion such a lienor has priority for his lien despite Rev. Stat. § 3466. See Thelusson v. Smith, 2 Wheat. 396, 424; Conard v. Atlantic Insurance Co., 1 Pet. 386, 441; United States v. Waddill Co., 323 U. S. 353, 355.
Mr. Justice Jackson joins in this dissent.

 Jones Ill. Stat. Ann. (1944) § 45.154 (e):
“Foreclosure of lien. In addition and as an alternative to any other remedy provided by this Act, or by the laws of the State of Illinois the Director may enforce the lien herein created by petition in the name of the People of the State of Illinois to the Circuit Court of the county wherein the property subject to the lien is situated, praying that the lien which has attached to said property, be foreclosed and the aforesaid property be sold in the same manner as in cases of foreclosure of mortgages upon personal property in courts of record. In all such cases, it shall not be necessary that said petition describe the property to which said lien has attached and it shall be the duty of the employer against whom such petition has been filed to file in said proceedings, a full and complete schedule, under oath, of all personal property and rights thereto which he owned at the time the contributions, upon which the lien sought to be foreclosed in [is] based, become due, or which he subsequently acquired, indicating upon such schedule the property so owned by such employer which was, or is used by such employer in connection with his trade, occupation, profession or business, and if such employer shall so fail to do after having been so ordered by the court, he may be punished as in other cases of contempt of court.”