A note secured by a mortgage is a "negotiable instrument" governed by Pennsylvania’s Uniform Commercial Code, the state Superior Court has ruled in an apparent case of first impression in Pennsylvania.
Led by Judge David N. Wecht, the unanimous three-judge panel ruled that the holder of a note that is secured by a mortgage may assert an ownership and enforcement interest in it, when the indorsement is blank. This is in contrast to a special indorsement, which names a specific creditor as the exclusive payable party to an instrument at issue.
