Pennsylvania v. New York

Background

A dispute concerns who may take custody of unclaimed property held by Western Union Telegraph Co. The company’s records sometimes show a creditor’s last known address, sometimes show no address, and sometimes list an address in a State whose laws do not provide for escheat. The decree sets rules allocating which State may escheat or take custody of each item and notes that Western Union was incorporated in New York.

Reasoning

The Court tied the right to claim each item to what the company’s books show. When the records show a creditor’s last known address in a State, that State alone may escheat or take custody of the property to the extent its law allows. If no address appears on the books, New York, the State of incorporation, may take custody, but another State may recover the property from New York if it later proves the last known address was within its borders. If the books show an address in a State that has no escheat law, New York may take custody subject to the other State’s later right to recover when its law permits.

Real world impact

The decree creates a clear, record-based rule for allocating unclaimed Western Union property. States with a creditor’s last known address gain priority to claim property. New York receives items lacking an address or from non-escheating States, but those States retain the ability to recover property when their laws allow. This provides a predictable method for handling unclaimed telegraph funds.