So, ask at the courthouse for a UCC-1 form. They probably have one, or can tell you where to download a copy online. Fill it out, and be sure you have the bookseller's business or corporate name and address correct. Otherwise it may not apply. The filing must be done at the courthouse in the bookseller's jurisdiction (location), not yours if they are different. You will state the date when the consignment takes effect. Do not give the seller your books before this date; do not give him your books before the UCC forms are filed at the courthouse. Otherwise that electrician may rely on those books before you have put him on legal notice of your title.
Now, there's one more thing you need to do to be sure you're secured, which may require some friendly guidance from a courthouse clerk. You need to do a search of any preexisting liens against the seller's inventory. If there are any, you need to provide written notice to these preexisting lien holders of your continuing ownership of the books. Otherwise, their lien may attach to your books! In a bankruptcy sale, proceeds from the sale of your books could go to pay off the lien holder's secured debt. In other words, you might not get a penny from the sale of your books.
If the consignor in the Thomas case had done all of these, would she then have been totally secure? Not quite. She did not make her claim until eight years after she consigned her book. A UCC filing is good only for five years. When the five years are up, if the bookseller still has your books, you must make a new filing, and provide written notification to all persons holding liens against his inventory at the later time. Also, if the bookseller changes his business name, you will need to refile the form under his new name.
As noted earlier, this is just a brief overview, and may not cover everything you need to know in your jurisdiction. If you seriously value the books you consign, we recommend hiring a licensed attorney, and if they are not quite valuable enough to justify this in your mind, spend some time making helpful friends around the courthouse and read up on local law in the place where the bookseller conducts his business.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
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Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
