Stewart & Company v. Rivara, 274 U.S. 614 (1927)

Stewart & Company v. Rivara

No. 290

Argued April 22, 1927
Decided May 31, 1927
274 U.S. 614

ERROR TO THE SUPREME COURT

OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

Syllabus

Section 65 of the New York Personal Property Law provides that, whenever articles sold on condition that the title shall remain in the vendor until payment of the price are retaken by the vendor, they shall be retained for thirty days during which the vendee may comply with the contract and recover the property; that, after expiration of that period, if the contract is not complied with, the vendor may cause the articles to be sold at public auction, and that, unless sold within thirty days after expiration of such period, the vendee may receive the amount paid on the articles under the contract. Held, as applied to a vessel documented as a vessel of the United States and enrolled for the coastwise trade:

1. The state law does not interfere with the use of such vessels as instrumentalities of interstate commerce. P. 617.

2. In a suit by a vendee against a vendor to recover the amount paid on account of purchase price, the question whether the statute might conflict with enforcement of maritime liens of third parties in the federal admiralty jurisdiction is not involved. P. 618.

3. The statute does not conflict with the federal Recording and Enrollment Acts, Rev.Stats. §§ 4192, 4311. P. 618.

4. The regulation is valid as applied to enrolled vessels engaged in interstate commerce in the absence of legislation by Congress in respect of the matter. P. 618.

241 N.Y. 259 affirmed.

Error to a judgment of the Supreme Court of New York entered after affirmance by the Court of Appeals, awarding recovery to Rivara in a suit under the New York Personal Property Law for the amount paid by him on account of the price of a vessel which he had bought from the Stewart Company upon conditional sale and which the vendor retook when the vendee defaulted. See also 214 App.Div. 737.