The search for UCC Financing Statements, often referred to as UCC Check, is one of the most common public record searches performed in conjunction with corporate and financial transactions. UCC checks seek to locate liens filed against a debtor (individual or company) that has entered into a secured agreement and has a financial obligation to a secured party supported by collateral described within the financing statement.
Since the implementation of Revised Article 9 (RA9) of the UCC, there are strict rules for the filing of UCC financing statements and specific guidelines for the searching of UCC financing statements. Since RA9 governs the proper jurisdiction for the filing of UCC financing statements. The UCC searches to ensure a debtor does not have any outstanding financial obligations that could affect the decision of another prospective secured party to enter into a financial agreement. RA9 also requires all parties to use their “exact name” or “legal name” when filing a UCC financing statement. While in theory this should make UCC searches more accurate, many states have restricted their search logic to “exact name” searches as well limiting the ability to find filings that may have abbreviated names or misspellings, etc.