2. Promissory notes. Promissory notes referred to in this Law refer to cashier's checks.
Step 3 check. A cheque is a bill issued by the drawer, and a bank or other financial institution entrusted to handle cheque deposit business unconditionally pays a certain amount to the payee or holder at sight.
I. Definition of negotiable instruments
Bill refers to the negotiable securities issued by the drawer according to law and unconditionally paid by himself or others to the payee or holder, that is, some negotiable securities that can replace cash circulation. In a broad sense, bills refer to all kinds of securities and vouchers, such as bonds, stocks, bills of lading, treasury bills, invoices and so on. In a narrow sense, negotiable instruments only refer to the negotiable securities for the purpose of paying money, that is, the negotiable securities issued by the drawer according to the negotiable instruments law and unconditionally paid by himself or others to the payee or holder. In China, bills are drafts (bank drafts and commercial drafts), checks and promissory notes (bank drafts). Generally speaking, a bill refers to a negotiable securities issued by the drawer in business, unconditionally agreeing to pay a certain amount by himself or others, and the holder enjoys certain rights. Bills include: bills of exchange, promissory notes, checks, bills of lading, certificates of deposit, stocks, bonds, etc.
Second, the legal characteristics of the bill
1. Notes are mortgage-backed securities.
Securities are legal documents that record and represent certain rights. According to the difference between the occurrence of rights in securities and the relationship between securities, securities can be divided into valuable securities and priceless securities. The right on the warrant securities existed before the securities were made, and the making of the securities proved the existence of the right; When securities are lost or damaged and cannot be presented, the right can still be exercised as long as the existence of the right is proved by other means, such as stocks, bonds, bills of lading, etc. The right on the secured securities did not exist before the securities were made, and the security right was created when the securities were made; When the loss or damage of securities cannot be prompted, the rights of securities cannot be exercised. Bills are typical mortgage-backed securities.
2. Bills are debt securities.
According to the different legal nature of rights in securities, securities can be divided into three types: real rights securities, debt securities and membership rights securities. Property rights securities are used to prove property rights, such as bills of lading and warehouse receipts; Member rights securities are used to prove the rights of members. If a company's shareholder rights are membership rights, stocks belong to this kind of securities. The right shown on the bill is a kind of creditor's right with a certain amount as the claim. The holder of a bill (that is, the payee or the holder) may exercise the right of payment and recourse against the obligor of the bill (that is, the payer, acceptor and their guarantor or recourse).
3. Bills are monetary securities.
Debt securities can be divided into two types according to the economic content of the rights they recommend: one is monetary securities with the content of asking for money; The other is the securities with the content of requesting payment. Bills are based on a certain amount, and paying the "bill amount" is the only purpose of issuing bills, so bills are monetary securities.
4. Bills are negotiable securities.
A bill is a debt security, so it should be liquid. Therefore, the negotiable instrument laws of all countries emphasize the negotiable securities nature of bills, that is, bills can be transferred by endorsement or delivery and can be freely circulated in the market. Different from the general assignment of creditor's rights, it needs to be notified to the debtor in accordance with the provisions of the civil law before it can take effect for the debtor. Some countries stipulate that bills are absolutely negotiable. For example, in the United States, bills are called negotiable securities, and their bill law is called negotiable securities law.
5. Bills are securities without reason.
The establishment of bills is based on certain reasons, but the establishment of bill rights is not based on the establishment and foundation of causal relationship between creditors and debtors. The bill relationship and the cause relationship are independent. As long as the bill held by the holder is available, the rights on the bill can be exercised, that is to say, the holder has the right to ask the payer to perform the payment obligation without proving the reason for obtaining the bill; The payer doesn't have to ask the holder why he got the bill. As long as the bill is available in form, if the endorsement is continuous, he must pay unconditionally. Even if the reason is invalid, it will not affect the exercise of bill rights. The negotiable instrument is the guarantee of its circulation. Articles 10 and 2 1 of China's current bill law stipulate that bills are securities with cause. Article 14 of the Supreme People's Court's Provisions on Several Issues Concerning the Trial of Negotiable Instruments Cases actually amends the legal provisions and defines negotiable instruments as securities without cause.
6. The bill is Wen Yi Securities.
The rights and obligations set on a negotiable instrument are determined according to the words recorded on the instrument and are not affected by other matters other than the words on the instrument. The person who signs a bill of exchange shall be responsible for the bill according to the meaning of the bill at the time of signing, and may not change or supplement its meaning with evidence other than the bill. Therefore, the literal nature of bills protects the legitimate rights and interests of bona fide holders, thus achieving the purpose of protecting transaction security.
7. Bills are important securities.
A bill must be enacted in legal form to be effective. In addition to being in written form, all kinds of bills must be marked with their types, and in strict accordance with the provisions of the Bill Law, the drawer's name, the amount of bills, the names, dates, places, signatures and other items that should be recorded should be recorded. Bills that do not meet these statutory forms are invalid. In addition, the issuance, transfer, acceptance, payment and recourse of bills must also be carried out in strict accordance with the procedures and methods stipulated in the bill law. Accordingly, the importance of bills distinguishes them from the arbitrary records of general creditor's rights certificates, that is, non-negotiable securities.
8. Notes are proprietary securities.
In the form of bill rights, the holder must actually possess the bill. If the bill is stolen, damaged, lost or pledged, it is impossible to claim rights from the payer. Therefore, the bill creditor's rights must be based on the possession of the bill.
9. Bills are negotiable securities.
When the holder requests payment or exercises the right of recourse, he must present the bill to the debtor. The debtor can only perform the payment obligation according to the literal meaning of the bill after examining whether the bill is true and has the necessary form. It can be seen that bills are spot securities.
10. Bills are returned securities.
The possession and implication of bills determine that bills must be returned securities, that is, after the creditor's bill rights are realized, bills must be returned to the debtor. Therefore, the rights on the bill are inseparable from the possession of the bill, and the holder must hand over the bill to obtain the par value. When the payer is the main debtor, the bill relationship disappears after payment; If the drawee is a secondary debtor, he shall hold the bill of exchange for recourse from his prior party after payment.
Legal basis: Article 2 of the Bill Law of People's Republic of China (PRC) is applicable to bill activities in People's Republic of China (PRC). The term "negotiable instrument" as mentioned in this Law refers to bills of exchange, promissory notes and checks.