Uniform Commercial Code
Effective July 1, 2001, Montana implemented
Revised Article 9 (RA9) of the Uniform Commercial Code, the body of law that provides for
nationwide uniformity in the way certain kinds of loans are secured. A UCC lien is a
financial document stating that a lender (secured party) has a claim
in certain property belonging to someone else (debtor). By filing a UCC lien,
a secured party establishes his or her priority for payment over subsequent secured
parties if the debtor defaults on the loan. The lien document filed with the Montana Secretary of State's Office provides a notice to interested parties of the existence of a security interest against specific collateral.
RA9 replaced old Article 9 in its entirety. The differences significantly impacted filing requirements. Reflected on this page are helpful tips that will assist you when recording a lien notice with our office. We encourage you to carefully review the contents of Revised Article 9 for a better understanding of the full impact of this law.
It is the responsibility of the secured party to get the debtor's name right. The Secretary of State's office will reject UCC liens and amendments that do not correctly identify debtor's name as required by RA9. Listed below are some helpful tips to consider when reflecting a debtor name on a UCC lien.
- Examine, copy,
and retain multiple identification records to reveal name variations (for example, Social
Security card, driver's license, tax returns, etc.).
- Do not rely on a
signature, even if legible, to discern the exact name of an individual.
- If the
individual has only one financing name, such as "Cher," list the name in the space
provided for the last name.
- Trade names
adopted by individuals and organizations are not correct debtor names.
- Never combine
multiple debtor names on one form (for example, Smith, Jack and Jill, or Jack Smith DBA/Jack's
U Serve).
- Identify
suffixes to distinguish filings by lineage (for example, Jr. or Sr.)
- If the debtor is an organization, check the charter documents in the organization's state of jurisdiction.
- Double-check the
spelling of the debtor name on the lien.
If the debtor is an organization, then the state in which the debtor
was organized, the type of organization, and the organization's identification number
must now be included on the lien. This requirement covers new filings as well as
amendments that add new organizations as debtors. Here are some helpful tips when
completing this information:
·
Type of organization refers to corporation, limited partnership, limited
liability company, etc.
·
Jurisdiction of organization is the state in which the entity incorporated
or in which its charter documents (Articles of Incorporation) were filed.
·
In Montana, the organizational ID number is the folder number assigned to
the charter documents by the Secretary of State's Office.
For more information about the organizational
status of specific debtors, visit the Secretary of State's Business Entity Search page.
The filing location of a UCC lien is determined as follows:
- If the debtor is
a "registered" organization, the UCC is filed in the state of
organization/registration.
- If the debtor is
an individual, the UCC is filed in the state of legal residence.
- RA9 also changed the place for filing consumer good liens from the counties to the state. Be sure when transferring your lien to the state you include the following language on the form "the financing statement remains effective" as required by 30-9A-706(c), MCA.
The current practice of the Secretary of State's Office is to
assign a filing time of 8 a.m. on the day the U.S. Postal Service delivers the filing to
us. On documents delivered in person or received by fax, express service, or e-mail, we
assign the exact time and date of delivery. The Secretary of State's Office plans to
continue this practice under RA9.
RA9 no longer requires the debtor and secured party's signatures on a UCC lien or UCC amendment. However, the law requires the debtor to authorize the filing of a UCC lien and the secured party is required to authorize the filing of a termination statement.
When amending a UCC lien, RA9 requires you to identify the original filing
number. The Secretary of State's Office has adopted administrative rules that
additionally require you to provide the names of the debtor and secured party listed on
the original filing. The reason for this requirement is to avoid inadvertently amending another
secured party's lien by transposing a filing number.
UCC Bulk download allows registered users to download a complete listing of all Uniform Commercial Code and Effective Financing Statement liens recorded with the Montana Secretary of State’s office. To register for this service please contact Discovering Montana at 449-3468 or (866) 449-3468.
The Secretary of State’s Office offers a Uniform Commercial Code search service through Discovering Montana. This service, available for a fee, provides information about all liens filed with our office, both active liens and those that lapsed or were terminated after June 30, 2001. Through the UCC Search site, you can search debtor names, view filing information, order copies of filings and amendments, and print certified search certificates.
To use the service, you need to contact Discovering Montana at (406) 449-3468 or 1-866-449-3468.
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