Double Signature in Bill of Exchange

Double signature is a requirement for the representation of the capital companies. However, one or more persons may be authorized to sign on company contracts. For the bills of exchange, the general rule is the existence of signature of the issuer. Even if two persons are authorized to sign the second signatures other than the company stamp are accepted as “aval”. The signature, other than the Company's stamp, entails the “personal” responsibility of the signatory for the debt.

So what is aval?

• Aval is a guarantee that the bill of exchanges will be paid at maturity.
• The validity of aval depends formally on the existence and validity of the actual debt.
• There is no time limit for aval, it can be given after due date or date of the protest.

Regarding this issue, the Court of Appeals for the 12^th Circuit stated in its decision no. 2012/5967:

“The signature by the single authorized representative of the Company on the bil of exchange other than the company stamp makes himself/herself responsible. In order for the responsibility to be born, the signature of the drawer shall be sufficient and since the second signature on the front of the bill is not required, the signature other than the company stamp shall be considered as aval.”

We would like to summarize the invalidity cases for aval below:

• The payer is not allowed to provide aval in the check.
• If the bills of exchange are invalid due to the lack of form, the avaliste is not responsible for the debt.
• We would like to underline that, unlike bail, the avaliste is not bound by the consent of his wife.

Att. Abide Gulel Birsen
Att. Yusuf Eren Yildiz (info@gulelhukuk.com)

Yazar : Gulel Hukuk