Conveyance is a generic term for any written document which transfers
(conveys) real property or real property interests from one party to another.
A conveyance of real property must be acknowledged before a notary and
recorded with the County Recorder or Recorder of Deeds. In some instances,
a conveyance is made by a court judgment and must be certified as the same
as the document on file.
If a court finds that a client was insolvent before asset protection
strategies were implemented, then it is possible that the court will deem
transfers to be fraudulent. Fraudulent transfer provisions of state law
and bankruptcy law protect present and subsequent creditors against transfers
made with the intent to hinder, delay or defraud them.
Although states vary in indicators of fraud which are recognized the
following factors, among others, may be used to infer fraudulent conveyance:
- An inadequate or fictitious consideration or a false recital as
to consideration;
- The fact that property is transferred by a debtor in anticipation
of or during a pending suit;
- Transactions which are not in the usual course or method of doing
business;
- The giving of an absolute conveyance which is intended only as security;
- The failure to record the conveyance or an unusual delay in recording
the payment;
- Secrecy and haste are ordinarily regarded as badges of fraud but
are not in themselves conclusive of fraud;
- Insolvency or substantial indebtedness of the grantor;
- The transfer of all the Debtor's property, especially when she is
insolvent or greatly financially embarrassed;
- An excessive effort to clothe a transition with the appearance of
fairness;
- The failure of parties charged with fraudulent conveyance to produce
available evidence or to testify with sufficient preciseness as to the
pertinent details, at least in cases where the circumstances under which
the fraud, transfer took place are suspicious;
- The unexplained retention of possession of property transferred
by Grantor after conveyance;
- The buyer's employment of the seller to manage the business as
before, selling the goods which were the subject of the transfer;
- The failure to examine or to take an inventory of the goods bought
or the presence of looseness or incorrectness in determining the value
of property;
- The reservations of a trust for the benefit of the grantor and the property conveyed;
- The existence of a blood or other close relationship between the parties to the transfer.
The following is a North Carolina statute dealing with unauthorized use of a conveyance:
§ 14‑72.2. Unauthorized use of a motor‑propelled conveyance.
- A person is guilty of an offense under this section if, without the express or implied consent of the owner or person in lawful possession, he takes or operates an aircraft, motorboat, motor vehicle, or other motor‑propelled conveyance of another.
- Unauthorized use of an aircraft is a Class H felony. All other unauthorized use of a motor‑propelled conveyance is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
- Unauthorized use of a motor‑propelled conveyance shall be a lesser‑included offense of unauthorized use of an aircraft.
- As used in this section, "owner" means any person with a property interest in the motor‑propelled conveyance. (1973, c. 1330, s. 38; 1977, c. 919; 1979, c. 760, s. 5; 1979, 2nd Sess., c. 1316, s. 47; 1981, c. 63, s. 1, c. 179, s. 14; 1993, c. 539, ss. 36, 1166; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c).)
