Tri$-$State Supply purchased used equipment from various restaurants, including Coffee & Connections. Tri$-$State refurbishes and sells the equipment to small restaurants. In December $2015,$ Tri$-$State purchased five freezers and five ovens for $$20,000.$ Because of the good relationship between the companies, Coffee & Connections financed the purchase for two years; however, Coffee & Connections did not obtain a perfected security interest in the equipment. In July $2016,$ Tri$-$State sold all of the equipment to another refurbishing company for $$1,000$ and filed bankruptcy $7$ days later. Tri$-$State still owed approximately $$16,000$ to Coffee & Connections for the equipment.

Evaluate the legal and ethical issues associated with Tri$-$State's sale of the equipment before filing bankruptcy. What recourse does Coffee & Connections have in recovering the monies still owed on the equipment or the remaining oven?