Glossary
Active:
UCC’s are active for five years from the file date.UCC search results will contain active UCC’s as well as filings that have lapsed or been terminated for up to one year.
Addendum:
There are three addendum forms. The first two areUCC1AP and UCC3AP for when you have additional parties, debtor or secured party, for which there is no space on UCC1 or UCC3 forms. The third is UCC1Ad and is used when filing UCC1. The UCC1Ad is used when real estate related collateral, box 12 must be checked and a legal description must be included in box 14. If the record owner of the real estate is not the Debtor, the name and address of the record owner must be provided in box 15. When the Debtor is a transmitting utility, or transaction is connected with public finance or a manufactured home, box 18 of the addendum must also be checked.
Amendment:
The term amendment is a broad term meaning all filings that affect the initial financing statement. Besides an amendment to information on the financing statement, the term includes termination, continuation, assignment, and release.
Amendment Addendum:
This Addendum is attached as a second page to the UCC-3 amendment. The Amendment Addendum allows the filer to add additional information in #13, such as added collateral.
Assignment:
A secured party may give all or part of the rights to the collateral in a financing statement to another secured party. As an example, a bank might sell a loan to another bank.
Assignee:
One to whom a right, title, or interest is assigned; grantee
Assignor:
One who assigns a right, title, or interest to another; grantor.
Attachment(s):
Anything that is referenced and/or attached to a financing statement continuation the collateral. (i.e. Exhibit A).
Bankruptcy:
A proceeding under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, governed by Federal law whereby a person or company files a bankruptcy petition to seek relief from payment of debt or to reorganize one’s finances.
Collateral:
is a borrower’s pledge of specific property to a lender to secure payment of a loan The collateral serves as protection for a lender against a borrower's default.
Continuation:
An amendment that continues the effectiveness of a financing statement for an additional five years. Continuations may only be filed in the six months prior to the filings lapse date.
Correction Statement:
A UCC record that indicates that a financing statement is inaccurate or wrongfully filed. The filing of a correction statement does not affect the status of any UCC filing, nor does the filing officer effect changes on the record as a result of a correction statement.
CountyLevel Searches:
Searches performed at the county level which can include any of the following, UCCs, fixture filings, tax liens, judgments, suits, lis pendens, and fictitious business names.
Debtor:
The person or organization that owes payment to the secured party.
Exact Legal Name:
Exact legal debtor name for a registered organization such as a corporation, limited partnership, or limited liability company, is the exact name under which it was organized. Use the legal name appearing on the organizational document. Exact legal debtor name for an individual is the name appearing on a person’s driver’s license or state issued identification card, birth certificate or passport.
Federal Civil Suits:
Search of civil suits filed with the U.S. District Court.
Fictitious Business Name:
A company whose operating name differs from its legal name is said to be doing business under a fictitious business name.
File Number:
The number assigned to an initial financing statement.
Financing Statement:
A document which is filed to perfect a security interest and thus becomes public record. It is done when filing is required or elected in order to perfect.
Fixture:
An object that has been attached to land so as to become part of the real estate. This also includes goods when they become so related to the real estate that an interest in them arises in real estate law (i.e. a furnace, counter-tops, sprinkler systems).
“In Lieu” filing:
An original financing statement that continues and moves a financing statement that was previously filed in another jurisdiction, but is filed in a new location pursuant to Revised Article Nine.
Judgment Lien:
I want to do this! What's This?
Judgment liens are a legal instrument used to ensure that consumers pay their debts properly. When a consumer fails to pay a debt, a creditor may take that individual to court to recover the amount of the debt. Debtors are given a chance to pay the debt themselves. If this doesn't occur, a judgment lien is placed against the home of that individual.
Lapsed:
The effectiveness of a filed financing statement lapses on the expiration of the period of its effectiveness unless before the lapse a continuation statement is filed. Upon lapse, a financing statement ceases to be effective and any security interest or agricultural lien that was perfected by the financing statement becomes unperfected. Filings will appear on record for one year after lapsed date.
Lien:
A potential hold or claim which one person has on the property of another to secure payment of a debt or other obligation.
Lis Pendens:
Lis Pendens refers to a notice of a pending action. The purpose of a lis penden is to notify prospective buyers or sellers that any interest acquired by them in property in litigation is subject to decision of court and while it is simply a notice of pending litigation the effect on the owner of property is constraining.
Mechanic’s Lien:
A mechanic's lien is a security interest in the title to property for the benefit of those who have supplied labor or materials that improve the property. The lien exists for both real property and personal property.
Official Search:
A Search performed at the State or County and is certified to be true and correct, with a seal or signature.
Optional Filer Reference:
An “optional” field provided to the filer for miscellaneous use. This field is often used to include a filer’s internal reference number, the filing jurisdiction (i.e. CA SOS), and the debtor name if the UCC doesn’t already include that information as on a UCC-3 assignment.
Perfection:
Perfection occurs when the secured party's security interest is protected from third parties claiming or seeking to claim an interest in the collateral. This can occur by filing a financing statement (or security agreement as a financing statement) in the appropriate place, or by taking possession of the collateral
Personal property:
A right or interest in things of a temporary or movable nature. Anything not classed as real property.
Priority:
The relative property rights in collateral among competing secured parties, lien creditors, and buyers or purchasers. Generally, priorities are created to permit payment, where funds exist, to certain special classes of creditors. They are to be paid before other classes by a fixed descending order.
Real property:
Ownership rights in land and its improvements
Revised Article Nine:
A revision of the uniform commercial code by the uniform law commission to amend the section relating to secured transactions. Revised Article 9 was effective July 1, 2001 and was adopted by all states. Most states, however, further amended the article in some manner so the law is not completely uniform from state to state.
Search Criteria:
Text entered to perform the search, use left to right search logic. (Example of search text: search text of 'Spice' will return results of Spice and anything after; e.g., Spiced, Spiced Rum, Spice Rack, etc.)
Secured Party:
A secured Party is someone who holds a security interest in some goods or property of a debtor.
Security Agreement:
An agreement between a borrower and a lender which gives a security interest to the lender in property owned by the borrower. It specifies what property the lender is entitled to take if the loan is not repaid.
Security Interest:
A contractual interest in personal property or fixtures which secures payment or performance of an obligation. The property may either be in the possession of the creditor, or of the debtor. If in the possession of the debtor, the creditor's security interest is obtained by a signed security agreement giving the creditor rights in the property.
State UCC Searches (Official/Unofficial):
Search of the UCC database for a particular state jurisdiction.
Suits:
A proceeding filed by a plaintiff(s) against a defendant (s) in a court of law, in which the plaintiff(s) seeks monetary or non-monetary relief. Suits are filed with State courts.
Tax ID Number:
A number assigned solely to a business by the IRS. A tax ID number is used to identify a business to several federal agencies responsible for the regulation of business. The Federal Tax ID Number is to a corporation or L.L.C. as a Social Security Number is to an individual.
Tax Liens:
A lien filed on an individual or company by a governing agency (Federal or State) for unpaid taxes.
Termination:
A type of amendment the secured party files to terminate the effectiveness of the financing statement.
Through Date:
The through date is the date given by recording offices to inform you of how current their recorded lien information is.
UCC:
Uniform Commercial Code is a law that covers virtually all business transactions and is divided into several chapters or articles, with article 9 governing secured transactions. A secured transaction is one where a lien is filed against collateral being held for repayment of a loan. There are both county and state UCC Searches available, as well as Official, Unofficial, and Prelims, and with or without copies.
UCC Filing:
A legal document creditors use to secure their rights to collateral specified in a secured financing agreement. This document, which the creditor files with the appropriate state authority (Secretary of State office), gives the creditor a legally recognized interest in the collateral until payment is received in full. It also provides legal title to these assets in the event a debtor suffers financial hardship and is unable to meet its promise to pay.
UCC-1 (or Initial Financing Statement):
A standardized form recorded with the Secretary of State and/or County office to perfect a lien under the Uniform Commercial Code by notification to all interested parties.
UCC-3 (or Amendment):
A standardized form recorded with the Secretary of State and/or County office used to amend or change the information contained in a UCC-1 or initial financing statement. Amendments include assignments, continuations and terminations or release.
UCC Search to Reflect:
UCC search performed after the filing of a UCC, which would reflect that this UCC had been properly filed.
Unofficial Search / Prelims:
Searched though a database or state, and is not state certified.
Validate:
To confirm that all of the fields required for filing within a particular jurisdiction contain information.