Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (2026)
Liens and encumbrances - Filing
✓ current as of May 2026
No conditional sales contract, chattel mortgage, or other lien or encumbrance or title retention instrument upon a registered vehicle, other than a lien dependent upon possession entered into after March 1, 1951, or a lien of the state for taxes established pursuant to title 67, chapter 1, part 14, shall be valid against the creditors of an owner or subsequent purchasers or encumbrancers, until the requirements of this section and § 55-3-126 have been complied with, unless such creditor, purchaser, or encumbrancer has actual notice of the prior lien.
Acts 1951, ch. 70, § 68 (Williams, § 5538.168); Acts 1978, ch. 686, § 3; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 59-326.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 18
cases, 1980–2005 · leading case: Still v. First Tennessee Bank, N.A., 900 S.W.2d 282 (Tenn. 1995).
Still v. First Tennessee Bank, N.A., 900 S.W.2d 282 (Tenn. 1995). “I Tenn.Code Ann. § 55-3-125, originally enacted in 1951 and amended in 1978, provides as follows: 55-3-125 Liens and encumbrances— Filing No conditional sales contract, chattel mortgage, or other lien or encumbrance or title retention instrument upon a registered vehicle .”
Norwood v. Crabtree (In Re Crabtree), 39 B.R. 713 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 1984). “§ 544 (a) (1979); Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (1980); Tenn.Code Ann.”
Keep Fresh Filters, Inc. v. Reguli, 888 S.W.2d 437 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1994). “Tenn.Code Ann. §§ 55-3-125, -126(b). When Did Keep Fresh Filters’ Lien Arise? The rights of a hen creditor hinge upon identifying the precise point when its hen arises.”
In Re Ridley, 50 B.R. 51 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 1985). “§§ 55-3-125 (1980) and 55-3-126 (Supp.1984).”
Waldschmidt v. Miracle Motors (In Re Haynes), 28 B.R. 136 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 1983). “See Tenn.Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (repl. vol. 1980).”
Apex Oil Co. v. Tims (In Re Armstrong), 56 B.R. 781 (W.D. Tenn. 1986). “9-302(3), (4), Tenn.Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (1980); Still v.”
Waldschmidt v. Smith (In Re York), 43 B.R. 36 (Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 1984). “§§ 55-3-125 and 55-3-126 specifically address the requirements for perfecting liens on motor vehicles: No conditional sales contract, chattel mortgage, or other lien or encumbrance or title retention instrument upon a registered vehicle, other than a lien, dependent upon…”
Farmer v. Green Tree Servicing LLC (In Re Snelson), 330 B.R. 643 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 2005). “” Tenn. Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (1997). Section 55-3-126, as it existed in 1997, provides in material part: (a) A lien or security interest in a vehicle of the type for which a certificate is *651 required shall be perfected and shall be valid against subsequent creditors of the…”
Hamilton Bank of Morristown v. Bank of Com. (In Re Morristown Lincoln-Mercury, Inc.), 25 B.R. 377 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 1982). “Tenn.Code Ann. § 55-3-125 (1980) — Liens and encumbrances — Filing.”
Walker v. Ford Motor Credit Co. (In re Clark), 112 B.R. 226 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 1990). “§ 55-3-125 and § 55-3-126(a) address the requirements for perfecting liens on motor vehicles: No conditional sales contract, chattel mortgage, or other lien or encumbrance or title retention instrument upon a registered vehicle, other than a lien dependent upon possession…”
In Re Ramey, 93 B.R. 136 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 1988). “1988), the Tennessee legislature provided alternative methods by which security interests in motor vehicles may be perfected in Tennessee: (1) by compliance with the Tennessee motor vehicle laws requiring registration and applications for certificates of title with the secured…”
Farmer v. LaSalle Bank (In Re Morgan), 291 B.R. 795 (Bankr. E.D. Tenn. 2003). “(d) The method provided in this section and § 55-3-125 of obtaining a lien or encumbrance upon a motor vehicle, .”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.