Upon the failure of a grain dealer or warehouse operator, the statutory lien created in RCW
22.09.371 shall be liquidated by the department to satisfy the claims of depositors in the following manner:
(1) The department shall take possession of all commodities in the warehouse, including those owned by the warehouse operator or grain dealer, and those that are under warehouse receipts or any written evidence of ownership that discloses a storage obligation by a failed warehouse operator, including but not limited to scale weight tickets, settlement sheets, and ledger cards. These commodities shall be distributed or sold and the proceeds distributed to satisfy the outstanding warehouse receipts or other written evidences of ownership. If a shortage exists, the department shall distribute the commodities or the proceeds from the sale of the commodities on a prorated basis to the depositors. To the extent the commodities or the proceeds from their sale are inadequate to satisfy the claims of depositors with evidence of storage obligations, the depositors have a first priority lien against any proceeds received from commodities sold while under a storage obligation or against any commodities owned by the failed warehouse operator or grain dealer.
(2) Depositors possessing written evidence of the sale of a commodity to the failed warehouse operator or grain dealer, including but not limited to scale weight tickets, settlement sheets, deferred price contracts, or similar commodity delivery contracts, who have completed delivery and passed title during a thirty-day period immediately before the failure of the failed warehouse operator or grain dealer have a second priority lien against the commodity, the proceeds of the sale, or warehouse-owned or grain dealer-owned commodities. If the commodity, commodity proceeds, or warehouse-owned or grain dealer-owned commodities are insufficient to wholly satisfy the claim of depositors possessing written evidence of the sale of the commodity to the failed warehouse operator or grain dealer, each depositor shall receive a pro rata share thereof.
(3) Upon the satisfaction of the claims of depositors qualifying for first or second priority treatment, all other depositors possessing written evidence of the sale of the commodity to the failed warehouse operator or grain dealer have a third priority lien against the commodity, the proceeds of the sale, or warehouse-owned or grain dealer-owned commodities. If the commodities, commodity proceeds, or warehouse-owned or grain dealer-owned commodities are insufficient to wholly satisfy these claims, each depositor shall receive a pro rata share thereof.
(4) The director of agriculture may represent depositors whom, under RCW
22.09.381, the director has determined have claims against the failed warehouse operator or failed grain dealer in any action brought to enjoin or otherwise contest the distributions made by the director under this section.
