OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSWN
Honorable D. C. Oreer
wate Elghv4y mgineer
2esas Hlghwgy De)epartment
Au@tIln,‘POxa@
Dew Sirr
who operate8
ifs are mtwnllq rrerpondeaoovhloh
%o y a w r ep uu
y o ulttr 6hed 1942, on the above
quertien.
that the inditfdual
ln Qlertlon ia operator oi “mite
aadBluoWbQ ed to rwh anl8Prhlp
on at 1eut on he ovner of the vahlolem
ment loned.
luthoritier in Peu8 on tha
authoritiorfrcm other
pew to be rimllrr regir-
olopedia of Automobile Law (9th Rd.), Vol.
371, it ir 8ridr
*Inarmuoh aI a oorporation, ilam or krdirldu8l
MJ a traae-name under vhioh bwlmrr
adopt PUT be
trazuaoted,a regiatratlon in the n&m 80 adapted
may be proper, UOept that, Of QOWSO, 4 fiOtitbN#
mma mnnot be a&opted by an lndirldua~, under tho
gui8e of a tr4d?hDUU), for the purpore of ocmeeal-
iq his identitr. So a plaintiff vho bu thw sop
isterod hia autorpoblle war ~444~4~ tw tiJurler dw
Hoaorablo Di C. Oreo)?,page P
to the n4gllg4noo of mothmr, and him right to re-
oover will not be defeated b the faot that the
plaintiff hmm failed to o-PI 7 with 4 statute re-
quiring m oertifioateof oertain faotm to be filed
by muoh a trmder, the ltatute being Intended solely
for the Informationmnd the groteotlon of oredltorm
vlth whom he ml&t oontraot.
In Berry on hutomobllem,(6th Ed.) Vol. 1, Seation 295.
page 266, it lm fwther maid:
Wd4r a ot4tute providing th4t 4n applloa-
tlon for the reglmtrmtionof a motor vehlole mmy be
made by the owner, and requiring the appllmmtlon
to oontaln a lt4toment oi th4 name, plaoe of reml-
denoe, and mddremm of thm lpplloant, an applloation
by au ovnor giving m fiotltioumpmrtnermhipname,
under vhioh ho had been oondwtlng budnsrr for
mmny pax-8 mnd vam well-known,warnheld to be auffl-
oient oompllwAi54*.It mm furthmr held lmimatorlml
that lumh owner had not oomplled with 4 mt4tute re-
quiring t&t lndlrldualm4ng$4g4d in bumlnemm mnder
nammm other than their own mhall file with the
olerk of the oity or town ln vhioh the plaoe of
bumS.nnemm18 lltumted, 4 aertlflorte stating the full
name mnd r4mldenoe of eaoh pmrmoti by vhom it 18
aonduoted,
'She oowtdeolued, hoverer, thmt regtmtra-
tion uuder 4 fiotitioum
nmae mdoptod for thm pw-
pore of aonoeallng identity would not ba a ooni-
pllanoe vith the ltmtute ~b404u44 the ceoord would
not lhov, nor the oertifiomte oontmia, a demarlp-
tive mtmtement by which the true owner oould bm
mma4rtrlned.t Co-ton V. uilli4n8, 216 #tams, 184,
3.03,?i.E. 298. See also ;ikenev. Wmhmm, 100
Irti.938, PuPted V. Hutmpkwey,188 B. x. 391;
Brewer v. Ilhyem,188 U. E. 600."
We call yew attention to the f'aatthat the statutes
oonaerningthe regl8tretionof automobile8 (6675a, R.C.S.) and
the Certifloateof Title A0t (1436-1, P.C.) require the lndlrl-
dual owner of a motor wehiole to dl8olo8e hi8 identity ln the
folloving lengumge:
J.’
Honorable D. 0. fkmer, pago 3
Artlale 66754-3 provider; "Applloatlonfor the
registrationof a motmr vehlale . . . shall bm sign-
md by the ouner of the vehicle, end ah411 give him
name end pddremrrln full. . . ."
Article 1436-1, Section 94, provl&mr "The
term fCertiflasteof Title( . . . mumt glveg
"(i) A epace for th8 migllatwe o? the owner
and the Owner 8h4u writ9 him nmme . . . in 811ch
mpaoe. . . ."
Art1010 X436-1, Beotlon 33, provl&mm: "Ilo
motor,vehIolenurybe dimporod of . . . aalrmm the
owner demlgnated . ) . shall tr4n8fer the aertlfl-
eate of title on form . . . vhlmh follnlhmll in-
mlude . . . 4n rffldavlt to the effoot that the
signer 18 the owner of the sotop vehicle. . . .#
Blnoe the suthorities clted hold that ths identity of
the ovner la the lllaln
purpose Involved In motor registration
statutes 4nd minae the Texa8 strtute8 dealing with registration
md the oortlfioateof title to motor vehicles roqulre that the
actwl ounermhlp of much vehIalem be dlmolomed In the fom PO-
qulr@ wader e4oh, we belleve that the lndivldtlal ia question
naryreglata and obtsin a certlfioateof title to motw vehlrlsm
operated in him buminemm under the trade pupe by uhich much bumi-
nemm 18 kamwn.