Fiduciary Administration – Nominee Statutes – Transfer of Securities Held for the Benefit of Another

Michigan is the forty-second jurisdiction to enact a nominee statute. Nominee statutes authorize a fiduciary to nominate a third person to hold stock or securities in the third person’s name without giving notice on the stock certificate or on the transfer books of the corporation of his qualified ownership. For the most part it has been assumed that these statutes would facilitate a more rapid transfer of securities. It is the purpose of this comment to compare and analyze these statutes and to determine whether they are the most effective means of accomplishing the end they are intended to serve.