1997 Minnesota Statutes

     514.952 Lien-notification statement; effect. 

    Subdivision 1.    Notification to lender.  A supplier 
 may notify a lender of an agricultural production input lien by 
 providing a lien-notification statement to the lender in an 
 envelope marked "IMPORTANT-LEGAL NOTICE."  Delivery of the 
 notice must be made by certified mail or another verifiable 
 method.  

    Subd. 2.    Lien-notification statement.  The 
 lien-notification statement must be in a form approved by the 
 secretary of state and disclose the following:  

    (1) the name and business address of the lender that is to 
 receive notification; 

    (2) the name and address of the supplier claiming the lien; 

    (3) a description and the date or anticipated date or dates 
 of the transaction and the retail cost or anticipated costs of 
 the agricultural production input; 

    (4) the name, residential address, and signature of the 
 person to whom the agricultural production input was furnished; 

    (5) the name and residential address of the owner and a 
 description of the real estate where the crops to which the lien 
 attaches are growing or are to be grown; or for a lien attaching 
 to livestock, the name and residential address of the owner of 
 the livestock, the location where the livestock will be raised, 
 and a description of the livestock; and 

    (6) a statement that products and proceeds of the crops or 
 livestock are covered by the agricultural input lien.  

    Subd. 3.    Response of lender to notification.  (a) 
 Within ten calendar days after receiving a lien-notification 
 statement, the lender must respond to the supplier with either:  

    (1) a letter of commitment for part of all of the amount in 
 the lien-notification statement; or 

    (2) a written refusal to issue a letter of commitment.  

    (b) A copy of the response must be mailed to the person for 
 whom the financing was requested. 

    Subd. 4.    Effect of response.  (a) If a lender 
 responds with a letter of commitment for part or all of the 
 amount in the lien-notification statement, the supplier may not 
 obtain a lien for the amount stated in the letter of commitment. 

    (b) If a lender responds with a refusal to provide a letter 
 of commitment the rights of the lender and the supplier are not 
 affected. 

    Subd. 5.    Effect of no response.  If a lender does not 
 respond under subdivision 3 to the supplier within ten calendar 
 days after receiving the lien-notification statement, a 
 perfected agricultural production input lien corresponding to 
 the lien-notification statement has priority over any security 
 interest of the lender in the same crops or livestock or their 
 proceeds for the lesser of:  

    (1) the amount stated in the lien-notification statement; 

    (2) the unpaid retail cost of the agricultural production 
 input identified in the lien-notification statement; or 

    (3) for livestock any limitation in section 514.954, 
 subdivision 2.  

    Subd. 6.    Lien priority.  An agricultural production 
 input lien does not have priority over liens that arise under 
 chapter 395 or 514, or over perfected security interests for 
 unpaid rent for the land where the crops were grown.  
 Agricultural production input liens are a security interest and 
 have priority according to chapter 336, the uniform commercial 
 code, except as provided in subdivision 5.  

    HIST: 1984 c 467 s 3; 1985 c 246 s 1-4