Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-128

Opinion No. 128 Wholesale Dealers-DealeI's-Bonds- Corporations. HIDLD: DUller the provisions of Chapter 164, Laws of H)33, the Com- missioner of Agriculture may accept one hond issued by the parent company cOI-ering the operations of all agencies and places of business in the state. April I, 1933. You request my opinion as to wheth- er "a company incorporated in this "tate and hal'ing several places of business, must furni~h a $5,000 surety bond in connection with each license i"sued and el'ery place of business, or whether Chapter 164, Laws of 1933, ma y be construed so as to permit you to accept one bond issued by the parent compnny cOI'ering the operations of nil agencies and places of business within the state". Section 4, subdivision a, of this act provides: "A separate license shall be requi red for each place of business". Section 4 of the act pro,ides that li- censes shall be issucd to such reputable persons as shall apply therefor, Sec- tion 3, subdivision b, pro,ides: "The term 'person' shall mean an individual or group of persons, exchange. firm, co-partnership, corporation or associa- tion". Section 1 defines a dealer at wholesale as "any person who shall buy to sell at wholesale, or contract to huy to sell at whole:<ale, or who shall handle at wholesale for the purpose of resale, or who shaH handle at whole- sale on account of. 01' as agent for an- other, any produce * * * ". Section 4, subdivision b, of the act fixes the amount of the bond at $5,000, which shall be "conditioned for the faithful performance of his duties as 11 dealer at wholesale * * * .. Such bond shall cover all wholesale produce business transacted in whole or in part within the State of Montana. It will he noted from a readin~ of the foregoing sections that although a sepa rate license is specifically required for each place of business that there is no specific prol'ision for a bond for each place of husiness. This failure to provide for a separate bond for each place of business is significant in view of the fact tha t it was contemplated that a dealer at wholesale might have more than one place of business, More- over, the bond is required to be broad {'nough to COI'er all wholesale produce husiness transacted in whole or in part within the Sra te of "fontana. It will he obsel'l'ed too that the bond is condi- tioned for the faithful performance of the duties of the dealer at wholesale, regardless of the place of business. 1 am therefore of the opinion that you may accept one bond provided that it is made bl'Oad enoug-h, as required hy said act, to cOI'er all the wholesale produce husiness of the company done in the State of ::Uontana. Any independent agency operating under or in conjunction with such com, pany fol' whose acts the said company would not he responSible, should, of course, be required to give a separate bond to cover its acts.