Some Disputed Questions in the Law of Commercial Paper

Abstract

A difference of opinion exists as to the effect which a stipulation for the payment of an attorney's fee, in case suit is brought upon the note, has upon the character of the instrument, the stipulation being expressed in the note itself. The question is whether an agreement of this character, contained in the note, destroys the negotiable nature of the paper, and it has attracted a good degree of attention within the last few years, by virtue of the important distinctions existing between the rights attached to negotiable and non-negotiable paper. If such an agreement destroys the certainty in the amount of money to be paid on the one hand and received on the other, then of course it renders the paper non-negotiable, by depriving it of that which is one of the most important characteristics of negotiability.