Heather owes Joe $2,000.On July 1, Joe assigns the debt to Noah.Thereafter on July 15, Joe assigns the same right to Deb, who in good faith gives value for it and knows nothing about the first assignee.Deb immediately notifies Heather of the assignment.Under:
A)the majority rule, Deb has priority.
B)the English Rule, a second assignment of the same claim can never be effective.
C)the English Rule, Deb has priority.
D)all of the rules, Noah has priority since he was the first assignee in time.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the English Rule (also known as the rule in Dearle v. Hall), the second assignee who gives value for the assignment and notifies the debtor first will have priority over any subsequent assignees or prior assignments. Therefore, Deb has priority over Noah and can collect the debt from Heather. It does not matter that Deb had no knowledge of the prior assignment to Noah.

Heather Owes Joe $2,000