Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-633

Opinion No. 633 Motor Vehicles-Chattel Mortgage -Conditional Sales Contrad -Filing Fee. HEI1D: A filing fee of fifty cents must be paid for the filing of each chattel mortgage or each conditional sales contract on a motor vehicle. October 27, 1934. Section 1758, R. C. M. 1921, as amend- ed by subsection 4 of section 2, Chap- ter 159, Laws of 1933, provides for the depositing \vith the registra r of motor vehicles of the original chattel mort- gage, or a copy of said mortgage ac- companied by a certificate of a notary certifying the same as a true and cor- rect copy of the original, and for the registration of the mortgagee as the legal owner of thc motor vehicle de- scribed in the chattel mortgage. It also provides for the deposit of a conditional sales contract, or a certified copy there- of, and for the registration of the con- ditional sales vendor as the owner of the motor vehicle descrihed therein. In following this procedure, a chattel mort- gage is exempted from the provisions of Sections 8278 and 8280 R. C. M., 1921, and conditional sales contract of a mo- tor vehicle is exempted from the provi- sions of Sections 75H4 and 7596 of the Re\;sed Codes. This section also pro- vides that such registration and the deposit of said instruments or certified copies shall constitute notice to subse- quent purchasers and encumbrancers. Section 5 of said chapter prO\'ides, "a fee of 50c shall be paid the registrar for filing chattel mortgages and conditional sales contracts * • *." You have stated that you are receiv- ing a number of copies of chattel mort- gages and conditional sales contracts which contain a number of automohiles listed together on one chattel mortgage or conditional sales contract. You ask whether or not you should return these documents for segregation, allowing but one automobile to be filed on each contract or mortgage. Your letter does not. recite any further· facts and we are not sure that we understand the exact situation. It is my opinion that it was the in- tention of the legislature that a fee of 50c should be paid for the filing of each chattel mortgage or each con- ditional sales contract.