Texas Lottery Commission, Petitioner v. First State Bank of Dequeen, Stone Street Capital, Inc., and Cletius L…

Summary

The Texas Supreme Court affirmed the court of appeals' judgment that UCC sections 9.406 and 9.102 render Lottery Act sections 466.406 and 466.410 ineffective to the extent they prohibit or restrict a prizewinner's assignment of the final two installment payments of a lottery prize. The Court rejected the Commission's sovereign-immunity objection because the claim challenged the validity of statutes rather than official action, and the Declaratory Judgments Act waives immunity by requiring governmental entities to be joined in such proceedings. On the merits, the Court held the Lottery Act's restrictions are not a 'different rule for consumers' under UCC section 9.201 because they apply to all 'persons,' and that UCC section 9.406(f)'s express, unambiguous command that conflicting anti-assignment statutes are ineffective forecloses resort to canons of construction. No separate writings issued.