THE SHARP LAW FIRM, P.C.1115 Harrison, P.O. that said - old checks went trough just fine if bank teller missed "void after 60 days" language ©2015 Sherman & Howard L.L.C. Sherman Howard has prepared this advisory to provide general information on recent legal developments that may be of interest. The court rejected this argument, stating: The court rejected this argument for multiple reasons: The court ruled that the “void after 90 days” legend did not comply with § 4-403(a) in any event. But let’s say you do … The check included a statement “Void After 90 Days.” The payee cashed the check nearly six months after its issue date. Other Talk - Can I deposit an expiring check? Re “Void after 90 days”-type wording on personal checks Hi, I’m another commercial lawyer weighing in here. 90 days after 10/30 is.... today, January 28th. But the Illinois Appellate Court’s decision, which is controlling only in the state of Illinois, simply underscores the importance of the terms of the account agreement a bank has with its customer. Simply printing "void after 90 days" on a check has no legal force or enforceability. So each of our checks is actually valid for 180 days (or 6 months) from the issue date. A stale check can be processed or declined; the bank chooses to honor it or not. Based upon a New Jersey Appellate Court decision over a stopped payment check that was over two years old, 90 or 180 days is too long. date? This is called Stale Dating. ... the 9½ month period after the end of the plan year in which the failure first occurred, or (2) … The UCC doesn’t specifically address what happens when you write things like “void after 90 days”(these phrases are called “restrictive legends”) on checks. In Bank of Am., N.A. If the check states "Void after 90 days," for example, then you may not be able to cash or deposit the check (some banks will overlook the void date). For example, it might say "Void after 90 days." Vernon, IL 62864 • Telephone 618-242-0246 • Facsimile 618-242-1170www.thesharpfirm.comBusiness Transactions • Litigation • Financial Law • Problem Finances • Real Estate • Corporate • Commercial Disputes• Creditors’ Rights • Arbitration & Mediation • Estate Planning • Probate • Family Law, “Void After 90 Days” Legend On Check Does Not, Constitute Valid “Stop Payment” Order, Court Rules, Second-Tier Subsidiary Exempt Under Collection Agency Act, Plaintiff Must Show Due Inquiry Before Publication →, 7th Circuit Hands Down New Rules On Standing, Crack Develops In Rule Against Divorce Contingent Fees, High Court Reaffirms Successor Liability Rule, Court Tells Standards For E-Filing Error Decisions, Attacks On Void Judgment Rule Continue Apace. 121 N.E. Many checks, particularly those from government agencies or large companies, contain fine print that voids the check after a certain period, such as 90 days. This advisory does not provide legal advice for any specific situation and does not create an attorney-client relationship between any reader and the Firm. The rest of the court’s opinion was devoted to addressing the provisions in the bank’s account agreement, e.g., stop payment provisions, 60-day notice provisions and one-year notice requirement. Doing a long-delayed errand, depositing a few checks from various and sundry rebates. Look at the date on your paycheck to see if you found it soon enough to deposit it. Accordingly, the second-tier entity was a subsidiary exempt under the act. Generally, a check with an expiration date is not valid after the date listed. In our opinion, an Accounts Payable check should expire in 20 or 25 days. You can put it on but its not likey to be enforceable, My Hunch is the rebate check is valid for as long as the law allows, the way the rebate companies get around it its they have many different checking account, and use a different one each month, then zero out the account after 3 months so anything that attempts to clear will bounce back for NSF. The court rejected this argument, stating: We cannot agree with Aliaga’s characterization, as it would create unworkable burdens on financial institutions in this era of ubiquitous electronic processing. The check included a statement “Void After 90 Days.” The payee cashed the check nearly six months after its issue date. However, certain government checks may prove good for up to a year. . No they wouldn't. The Illinois Appellate Court case, Aliaga Medical Center v. Harris Bank1 is helpful, but it falls short of scoring “an important victory for banks across the nation . Check says void after 90 days. The plaintiff, Aliaga, argued that the statement “Void After 90 Days” somehow took the item outside the scope of the terms of the bank’s account agreement. . If your Big Fat Check is ever missing, lost, destroyed or expired, we are happy to issue a replacement. The article states in part: The phrase “Void After 90 Days,” or some variation thereof, has long appeared on many checks. Is it the bank's responsibility to monitor these items? All small-ish companies I worked for had 60-90 days exp period printed on the checks, but none of them actually voided old checks (cost too much to put a stop on the check). That entity was actually a limited partnership owned by a subsidiary of the bank. Issuers recognize that most drawee banks utilize provisions in their account agreements to pay items that might be characterized as “stale items.”. We have a customer who is interested in having “Void After 30 Days” printed on her checks. UCC § 4-103(a) permitted § 4-403(a) to be “varied by agreement,” and the bank-depositor agreement did so. Some businesses have “void after 90 days” pre-printed on their checks. Once a check is stale dated, typically 180 days, the check is no longer valid and may be returned by the bank. That's it. What are the legal ramifications to the bank when a check is presented for payment to the account after that date? The court ruled that absent issuance of a stop-payment order in compliance with the bank-depositor agreement, the bank had a right to pay a $50,000 check despite presence of the “void after 90 days” legend on the face of the check. It's marked void if not cashed within 90 days. Noting that the legislature expressly limited a similar exemption under the Residential Mortgage License Act (205 ILCS 635) to first-tier subsidiaries, the court “express inclusive of a provision in one part of a statute and its omission in a parallel section is an intentional exclusion from the later” and could not be ignored. that stated a check can go stale after 90 days, but it is not void. Official Comments to the UCC indicated it did not intend its provisions to “freeze present methods of operation by mandatory statutory rules.”. Trouble is, its been a year and a half. Under the bank-depositor agreement in Aliaga, the customer was required to notify the bank of account problems, including erroneous statement entries or improper charges, within 60 days of the date the bank sent the monthly statement to it. More check law goodness: Cashier's checks cannot actually be stop-paid. Many check issuers attempt to encourage payees to negotiate items promptly by stating on their checks “Void After 90 Days” or similar language. Some businesses may have an expiration date printed on their business checks something like “void after 90 days”, Some firms place a limitation of 60 days on their payroll checks and90 on their payables checks so that their outstanding bank balance is reduced fast also in some cases if the business check is more than 6 months old, the bank may choose not … A recent article in the American Banker noted an Illinois court decision involving the right of a drawee bank to pay a check bearing the words “Void After 90 Days” long after the lapse of 90 days. You mark the check as cleared on your bank rec, and you also clear the Other Liab deposit & the Other Liab check, so in the end, you have cleared a net amount equal to the amount of the check. By closing this banner, scrolling this page, clicking a link, or continuing to browse this site, you agree to this use. Answer: Answer by John Burnett: Many banks have wording in their deposit contracts that puts customers on notice that such legends will not be enforceable unless the bank agrees in writing. Favorite Answer If they say right on them 'VOID AFTER 90 DAYS', that's exactly what it means - they are void. The court rejected these arguments because “they are inconsistent with the UCC, disregard [prior case law], and ignore the plain and unambiguous terms of the parties’ agreement.”. In the Harris Bank case, the check in question was issued by Aliaga’s president in the amount of $50,000, payable to his wife as part of a divorce settlement. A recent Illinois Appellate Court decision answered these questions with a resounding “No.”. invitations. By John T. Hundley, Jhundley@lotsharp.com, 618-242-0246. In Aliaga, the bank-depositor agreement specified the ways and times that a customer could stop payment on a check, but the customer argued these provisions were not controlling in light of § 4-403(a), under which it contended the “void after 90 days” legend was sufficient. The court said Aliaga produced no evidence the agreement was unconscionable, and that it was “common knowledge that account holders should review monthly bank statements to ensure against errors and rectify them promptly.”  It affirmed the trial court’s dismissal of the customer’s complaint. April 22, 2015. However, whether or not to cash an expired check is solely within the bank's discretion. Your best bet is to get into contact with the writer of the check and tell them. The plaintiff, Aliaga, argued that the statement “Void After 90 Days” somehow took the item outside the scope of the terms of the bank’s account agreement. Subscribe to our mailing list to receive firm updates, advisories, and event The phrase "Void After 90 Days," or some variation thereof, has long appeared on many checks. Aliaga took no steps to comply with these account provisions. OP, check with issuer of the check, they can tell you if check can be cashed. The reason is that banks are under no legal obligation to reject a check merely because the drafter wrote "void after [#] days" on the check. Your bank may ultimately decide to ignore those instructions and process a check anyway (some courts have found the statements to be unenforceable, but don’t count on that in every case). If it says void after 90 days it's void. That provision requires that a stop-payment notice be issued in “a manner that affords the bank a reasonable opportunity to act on it.”  In light of the fact that checks today are processed by automated systems that read only the MICR-encoded line, a legend elsewhere on the check directing non-payment “is not a reasonable means by which to direct a bank to stop payment on a check,” the court said. Banks are not obligated to honor the restrictive language on your checks like “void after 90 days.” In fact, there was a court ruling in the case Aliaga Medical Center S.C. v. Harris Bank N.A. Aliaga did not do so. while defining a new rule of law,” as stated in the American Banker article. Aliaga Med. Many checks have verbiage printed on the face that says: VOID AFTER 90 DAYS or VOID AFTER 180 DAYS. v. Kulesza, 2014 IL App (1st) 132075, debtors sought to vacate a mortgage foreclosure judgment on the ground that the originally-named plaintiff, BAC Home Loans Servicing, LP was not registered under the act and thus the judgment was void. The agreement between the parties governs. Especially if the check was written by a friend or family member, it's courteous to let the issuer know that you're cashing it. That's right - you don't void the check. In addition, while our Big Fat Checks are valid for 90 days, we also have an additional 90-day grace period. Effect of a Check Notation: Void After 90 Days. Tomorrow is day 89, if I deposit the check and it takes a few days to clear will it be rejected? Ctr., S.C. v. Harris Bank, N.A., 2014 IL App (1st) 133645. You would have to cancel the check in order for it … Most banks will honor those checks for up to 180 days and the pre-printed language is meant to encourage people to deposit or cash a check sooner than later. Restrictive … Thousands of such checks have been cashed or negotiated long after the lapse of the specified period of time. When people write "void after 90 days" on an otherwise acceptable Check, after the time is up the check actually becomes stale, not void. The exemption under the Collection Agency Act (225 ILCS 425) of banks and their subsidiaries is not limited to first-tier subsidiaries, the Appellate Court in Chicago has ruled. . 3rd 1203, 387 Ill. Dec. 32, November 10, 2014. This would be embarrassing for the payer and could be costly for both of you: Yo… Whether or not that restriction is valid depends on several factors. The customer argued it was not bound by the 60-day clause because the UCC controlled and the bank-depositor agreement did not address the bank’s “negligent acceptance” of a “void” check. For example, if John Doe gave you a check on June 1st with the words "Void After 90 Days" embossed on the front, it is unlikely the bank will cash it on September 1st or later. “This case . All checks issued after May 16, 2014 are printed with the words "Void after 90 days". A customer has printed on their checks void after 90 days. Box 906, Mt. Void After 90 Days Checks sometimes say they’re only good for 90 days (or 180 days). Personal, business, and payroll checks are good for 6 months (180 days). Now, those are a couple of big "only ifs", and because of that, most banks will (1) honor any "Void after XX days" printed on the check - they simply won't cash it past that date, and (2) in most circumstances, a bank will not cash a check that is more than six months old - 180 days past the issue date and it's a no go. Is a bank liable if it honors the payment of that check? (a) An instrument payable on demand becomes overdue at the earliest of the following times: (1) on the day after the day demand for payment is duly made; (2) if the instrument is a check, 90 days after its date; or (3) if the instrument is not a check, when the instrument has been outstanding for a period of time after its date which is unreasonably long under the … illustrates that bank customers run tremendous risks if they do not reconcile their bank statements in a timely manner,” the court said. A “void after 90 days” notation on a check does not constitute a stop-payment order under Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) § 4-403(a) (810 ILCS 5/4-403(a)) and “is not a reasonable means by which to direct a bank to stop payment on a check”, the Appellate Court in Chicago has ruled. Some checks come printed with text stating that a check becomes void after 90 days. On the 91st day after the date of issue, the check will be voided and the funds will be deposited back to the payment account. The customer in Aliaga did not do this, waiting nearly two years before objecting to the payment. If the check doesn't have a void by date, the Uniform Commercial Code applies, which says that banks are not obligated to cash any check that is more than six months old. It's a restriction designed to protect the check issuer, but is it really enforceable? By the Uniform Commercial Code, which guides banks in their operations, checks more than six months old are considered "stale-dated" and can be rejected. In Aliaga, the bank-depositor agreement also required that a disputing customer commence suit within one year of the bank’s provision of the subject monthly statement. Is a bank liable if it honors payment of that check? If you want to cash a check that's more than a few months old, contact the issuer. As observed earlier, the Harris Bank decision may be helpful if an issuer claims that a provision on a check such as “Void After 90 Days” should be monitored and enforced by the drawee bank. If your company has a different policy and will put stop payments on all checks over 30 days old, but the check says "Void After 90 days," the teller will still deposit it, … We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If the checking account holder keeps a low balance and has forgotten about the check, cashing it could put him into the red. citizens bank told me on the phone that "void after 90 days" will notstop the bank from cashing any check. - I finally found a check I misplaced. Owing to the multiple issues offered by the depositor in attempting to reverse the trial court’s dismissal of its complaint, Aliaga is an important case with several important teachings. Yes, technically the check is void after 90 and the bank is not required to honor the check. The phrase "Void After 90 Days," or some variation thereof, has long appeared on many checks. Checks can be voided until they have been cashed by your vendor (and cleared by the vendor's bank). It’s a restriction designed to protect the check issuer, but is it really enforceable? It enforced the 60-day clause. Ever cash a rebate check after the exp. A recent Illinois appellate court decision answered these questions with a resounding "No." One has a date of 10/30/12 and a statement on it declaring "Not valid after 90 days". If you find yourself with an expired government check, hold on to it. Is that money gone? A legitimately drawn cashier's check must be paid by the institution upon which it is drawn. . A “void after 90 days” notation on a check does not constitute a stop-payment order under Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) § 4-403 (a) (810 ILCS 5/4-403 (a)) and “is not a reasonable means by which to direct a bank to stop payment on a check”, the Appellate Court in Chicago has ruled. 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