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Bills And Notes - Rule Of Decision In Federal Courts - Application Of Swift V. Tyson To The Uniform Negotiable Instruments Law

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff, the transferee after maturity of certain promissory notes made by defendant in Florida, sued in his own name on the notes in the Federal District Court for Pennsylvania. Under the Pennsylvania practice, an assignee after maturity could not sue in his own name unless the notes were negotiable. The District Court concluded that the notes, which contained a provision for interest on overdue interest payments, were non-negotiable and sustained a demurrer. This was affirmed by the Circuit Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on the ground that although the Florida Negotiable Instruments Law was the law of the …