§ 680.360.Security Interest

Priority disputes over a judgment debtor's property usually come down to one question: who has a security interest, and whose interest was perfected first? This section defines the term the same way the Commercial Code does, keeping enforcement-law priority questions grounded in the same body of law that governs secured transactions generally.

A security interest gives its holder rights in specific property that can outrank a later judgment lien, depending on timing and perfection. Before a judgment creditor spends the time and expense levying on an asset, checking whether a security interest already encumbers it -- and how much value that leaves for the judgment lien to reach -- is often the first practical step.