Siegel v. New England Merchants National Bank

We are called upon to define the respective rights of a bank and its depositor when the bank has paid a postdated check before maturity and deducted the amount of the check from the depositor’s account. Applying the Uniform Commercial Code, G. L. c. 106, we conclude that the bank must recredit the depositor’s account, but may then assert against the depositor any rights acquired by prior holders on either the instrument or the transaction from which it arose. In the course of this opinion, we shall describe the parties’ responsibilities of proof with respect to the bank’s subrogation claim.…