Montana Attorney General Opinion 15-158

Opinion No. 158. Warehousemen-Storage--Gmin- Elevators. HELD: Although storage contract terminates June 30 each year, elevator Illay sell only so much wheat as may be necessary to pay storage charges, halance to continue in storage. April 13, 1933. You have submitted the following question: "I ha,e a storage ticket is· sued in 1932 and I do not present the same on .Tune 30th, 1933 for cancella- n·on but I do present it in October, 1933. Upon what basis would the ele- ,ator company settle with me for the halance of the grain after they had sold sufficient to pay the storage charges up to .Tune 30th, 1933? In oth- er words, does June 30th mark the !late for sale of all grain and is the elevator compan~' expected to set aside the amount belonging to me for deliv- ery U1)On surrender of the original stor- age ticket?" Section 3588, R. C. M. 1921, as amended lIy Chapter 35, I~aws of 1933, reads, in part: "All storage contracts on grain in store in pubHc local grain warehous- es, as evidenced by a warehouse re- ceipt shall terminate on June 30, of each year. "Storage on any or all grain may be terminated by the owner at any time before the date mentioned herein by the payment or tender of all legal charges and the su~render of the stor· age receipt together with a demand for de!i,cry of such grain, or notice to the warehouseman to sell the same. In the absence of a demand for de- livery, order to sell, or mutual agree· ment for the renewal of the storage contract entered into prior to the ex- piration of the storage contract, as prescribed in this Act, the warehouse- man shall upon the expiration of the storage contract sell so much of such stored grain at the local market price on the close of business on said day as is sufficient to pay the accrned storage charges and shall thereupon issue new storage tickets for the bal- ance of the grain to the owner thereof upon surrender by him of the original storage receipts. Provided, further, that it shall be thc duty of the ware- houseman on the first day of June of each year to notice all storage ticket holders at their last known address of the prm;sions of this Act." It is my opinion, in view of the word· ing of the above act, that the elevator company in the circumstances above mentioned would have no authority to sell more than "so much" of such grain stored as may he necessary to pay the Morage charges up to June 30 of each year, the date of the termination of the contract as provided in the act above quoted, and that the balance of the grain should continue in storage and new tickets ma(le and issued there· for when the original storage tickets ha,e heen surrendered. Notice should he mailed to the storage ticket holders in accordance with the proviso above quoted.