406
Stevens, J., dissenting
is delivered to the transferee, provided that the drawee bank honors the check within 10 days. If, however, the check is not honored within 10 days, the "transfer" occurs on the date of honor.
An additional consideration reinforces this interpretation of the statutory text. The Courts of Appeals are unanimous in concluding that the date of delivery of a check is controlling for purposes of § 547(c), and the Court does not dispute that conclusion for the purposes of its decision today. Ante, at 402-403, n. 9. These Courts of Appeals decisions are consistent with the legislative history,5 which, though admittedly not conclusive, identifies the date of delivery of a check as the date of transfer for purposes of § 547(c).6 Normally, we assume that the same terms have the same meaning in different sections of the same statute. See, e. g., Sullivan v. Stroop, 496 U. S. 478, 484 (1990). That rule is not inexorable, but nothing in the structure or purpose of §§ 547(b) and 547(c) suggests a reason for interpreting these adjacent subsections differently.7
I would therefore reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeals.
5 Indeed, many of these decisions rely on the legislative history. See, e. g., In re Continental Commodities, Inc., 841 F. 2d 527, 530 (CA4 1988); In re White River Corp., 799 F. 2d 631, 633 (CA10 1986); O'Neill v. Nestle Libbys P. R., Inc., 729 F. 2d 35, 37 (CA1 1984).
6 As the Court recognizes, ante, at 401, sponsors of the legislation in the House and Senate made identical statements to this effect.
7 As the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit cogently explained: "The policy of section 547(b) is to set aside transfers that potentially prefer selected creditors; section 547(c), in turn, defines groups of creditors who are excepted. To give the word 'transfer' a different meaning in these complementary subparts seems inconsistent, unworkable, and confusing." In re Belknap, Inc., 909 F. 2d 879, 883 (1990).
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