Beef & Bison Breeders, Inc. v. Capitol Refrigeration Co., Inc.
Supreme Court of New York
431 N.Y.S.2d 986 (1980)
Capitol Refrigeration (Capitol) obtained a $701 judgment against debtor Kwik Serv and delivered a property execution to the county sheriff on April 16. Patrick Cornell, the new owner of Kwik Serv's former premises, later obtained his own $4,469 judgment against Kwik Serv and delivered his execution to the same sheriff on July 3. The sheriff levied on Kwik Serv's property assets for Capitol's execution on August 15 (with a sale later stayed) but did not levy on Kwik Serv's bank accounts, worth about $1,000, for Cornell's execution until August 22. Cornell argued that because he was the first creditor to actually levy on the bank accounts, he should have first priority to that roughly $1,000.
Whether state law may allow a creditor whose execution was first delivered to the sheriff, but who levied on particular property later, to take priority over a creditor who levied on that property first.