Mortgages and public records in Louisiana

Hari Aum LLC v. First Guaranty Bank examined how Louisiana law handles documentation about a mortgage securing future indebtedness.  No. 11-31218 (April 16, 2013).  Article 3298 of the Civil Code recognizes such mortgages so long as basic requirements are satisfied. Articles 1839 and 3338 require the filing of certain instruments in the public record for them to have full legal effect.  The Court concluded that a pledge and a modification to the original mortgage did not need to be recorded “as long as these alterations did not exceed the total indebtedness under the pre-existing [mortgage], which they did not.”