Welcome to The UCC Made Easy

       Welcome to The Uniform Commercial Code Made Easy.  The title may sound like an oxymoron, but in reality, the UCC can be easy.  Understanding and navigating the UCC is largely a function of understanding the structure, organization and policies of the Code and how they fit together.  To a large extent, simply sequencing logically connected Code sections yields the essential meaning of the text. This blog is designed to systematically guide you through the UCC in a logical, sequential manner.  
 

       By way of background, I was one of those few people who liked the UCC immediately.  I was drawn to the intensity and challenge of the Code in my first year of law school, and the day my Contracts professor said ‘Nobody knows what the UCC means’; I knew that was the place for me.  
 

       I had the privilege of having Soia Mentschikoff as my commercial law professor in law school, and later as my Dean at the University of Miami School of Law.  As the Associate Chief Reporter to the Uniform Commercial Code, Dean Mentschikoff was integrally involved in the oversight and drafting of the whole UCC, and brought a level of insight and intellectual energy to the classroom that was both exciting and inspiring.  I studied the UCC a minimum of five hours per day in law school.
 

       During my last year of law school, I came to the realization that I was far more suited to live in a warm climate than Chicago, so I made the move to Miami Florida where I went to work with Shutts & Bowen. Shortly thereafter, Dean Mentschikoff left the University of Chicago School of Law to become the Dean at the University of Miami School of Law.  I was elated when she called to offer me an adjunct position at the University of Miami teaching commercial law.  I knew I would be forced to dramatically improve my knowledge of the Code in order to be successful in the classroom. The thought of being in front of a class room as a law professor nine months out of law school created a huge level of motivation.  Fear can do that.   
 

       I put in roughly 15 hours of preparation for each 50 minute class.  The more I studied the Code, the more I could see the various levels.  The main concepts almost lift themselves off the text and become apparent with enough time spent studying the text.  I became a full time professor after one and one half years as an adjunct, teaching all Articles of the Uniform Commercial Code, and the Federal Regulation of Banking. 
 

       During my first year as a full time professor, I had a major insight through which I ‘saw’ the Uniform Commercial Code as a short story/novel.  My thought was to write an entertaining story, based on realistic commercial transactions which would work the reader through the text of the UCC.  This would allow for a wide range of communication systems for the delivery of content, and provide a medium for learning the Code which was far more efficient than reading cases or problem solving.  Fortunately, Dean Mentschikoff supported the idea.

The Uniform Commercial Code Made Easy took three and one half years for the original version and another six for the updated version.  Many thousands of hours were invested in the project.  The original version was endorsed by Dean Mentschikoff which was very special for me.  Her precise words after reading it were ‘You made it so simple’.

 
       For the past twelve years, I have been teaching Uniform Commercial Code classes at the Stetson University College of Law. For the past three years, I used The Uniform Commercial Code Made Easy as part of the curriculum and largely as a result of the students’ positive reactions to the book, I made the decision to undertake this blog and the marketing of the book in the national and international markets. If you would like to see law student or other professional evaluations of the book, click here.
 

       In 2012 I began delivering a one day Continuing Legal Education presentation covering the whole Uniform Commercial Code.  Since that time, I have delivered the program to: the Oregon State Bar Association; Oklahoma State Bar Association; Illinois State Bar Association; North Carolina State Bar Association; Ohio State Bar Association; Missouri State Bar Association; Minnesota CLE; Cincinnati Bar Association; Columbus Bar Association, and the Cleveland Municipal Bar Association.
 

       The primary goal of this blog is to deliver content which will greatly assist those studying the UCC to understand the basic meaning of the text of the Code and how to utilize the UCC to its fullest advantage in drafting documents, litigation, or simply understanding the statutory scheme that governs billions of commercial transactions occurring in the United States every working day.
 

       Today’s blog was designed as an introduction and to familiarize you with my background.  In the next blog, we will discuss a brief history of the Code; the drafting style of the Code, and how to approach UCC problems in general.  From there we will move to the substantive content of the UCC starting with Article 1, and with the goal of moving through the whole Uniform Commercial Code.  The blog will present the Code via its two component parts: Transactions in Goods and Payment Systems.
 

       Periodically, there will be animations and other graphics accompanying the posts.  These animations and graphics are the work of Conner Kempe, a former student at Stetson. Conner has also undertaken the lead in marketing The Uniform Commercial Code Made Easy. Conner’s work is excellent and will greatly assist in the learning process.

The plan is two posts a week—Monday and Thursday.  I look forward to having you join us, provide input, and enjoy learning the Uniform Commercial Code.

Follow on instagram
Follow on facebook  
Follow on twitter
Follow on youtube 

        For a limited time only, enter promo code 'keytotheUCC' at checkout for 10 dollars off. To purchase The UCC Made Easy, please click here.