1996 tansmission filter

ok when i took my tranny oil pan out the filter it was just sitting in my pan , should it be attact to something???????

If VW automatic transmissions are like every other car on the road (which they are) heck yea they should be attatched to something that flows oil into it so it can capture crap with its filtering media. send pics of the filter, maybe the long nose part thats suppose to fit into the trans broke off and stayed on the trans or something.