National UCC Financing Statement Filing - Which State for Multi-State Collateral?

There's no such thing as a true 'national' UCC filing - each state maintains its own UCC system. For your situation, you'll typically file in the state where the debtor is incorporated (Delaware in your case) for most equipment, but fixtures and some specific collateral types require filing in the state where they're located. Mobile equipment that moves between states can usually be covered by filing in the debtor's state of incorporation.

Had a similar multi-state nightmare last year. Ended up filing UCC-1s in 4 different states because we had fixtures and some state-specific collateral. Each state has slightly different requirements too - some want more detailed collateral descriptions than others. The incorporation state (Delaware) should handle your mobile equipment, but anything permanently attached to real estate needs local filing.

Your new attorney is being overly cautious but probably right to be safe. I'd file in Delaware for the mobile equipment and vehicles, then individual fixture filings in each state where you have permanently attached machinery. Better to over-file than under-file and lose perfection.

Check UCC 9-301 for the choice of law rules. Generally you file where the debtor is located (for registered organizations, that's the state of incorporation). But fixtures are governed by the law of the state where the fixtures are located. So Delaware for mobile equipment, individual state filings for fixtures.

Been dealing with this exact issue for years. Most lenders take the belt-and-suspenders approach: file in the incorporation state for mobile equipment, then fixture filings in each state where equipment is permanently attached. Yes it's more expensive but it eliminates any perfection gaps.

I've used Certana.ai for multi-state filings and it's been a lifesaver. Upload your Delaware UCC-1 and it flags any potential issues with debtor names or collateral descriptions before you submit to other states. Caught several inconsistencies that would have caused rejections.

One thing to watch out for - some states have specific requirements for how you describe collateral that crosses state lines. California is particularly picky about collateral descriptions. Make sure your collateral schedule is detailed enough to meet the most stringent state's requirements.

Also consider whether any of your equipment qualifies as 'as-extracted collateral' if you're in oil/gas/mining. That has special filing rules under 9-301(4). Probably not relevant for manufacturing equipment but worth checking.

Whatever you do, make sure all your debtor names are EXACTLY the same across all states. Even small variations can cause problems. I learned this the hard way when one state had 'Inc.' and another had 'Incorporated' - total mess to clean up.

Final thought - consider whether you need to file UCC-1 addendums in any states. Some require additional pages if your collateral description is long or if you have multiple debtors/secured parties.