Anticipated changes by the UCC Division of the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth (“Massachusetts Secretary”) were the subject of an Alert dated February 2, 2010. The Massachusetts Secretary was considering a change to its UCC standard search logic (“SSL”) that would no longer disregard ending “noise words,” such as “Corporation,” “Inc.,” “LLC,” and “Limited Partnership,” in searching debtor names. The change was expected to be implemented on or about March 1, 2010, and result in the elimination of 950 CMR § 140.49(5), which provides that words and abbreviations at the end of a name are disregarded for purposes of the SSL.
However, no changes to the Massachusetts SSL have been adopted or implemented at this time. A new search system is being tested by the Massachusetts Secretary, but there has been no announcement concerning any revisions and no change in searching or filing procedures is necessary now. Any change would take into account the impact on existing filings and searches. Bingham will continue to monitor the situation in Massachusetts and issue Alerts as needed.
For more information about the subject matter of this alert, please contact the lawyers listed below:
This article was originally published by Bingham McCutchen LLP.