New Jersey UCC filings - debtor name rejection nightmare

NJ is definitely one of the stricter states for debtor names on UCC filings. The safe rule is always match the exact name on the articles of incorporation or organization. If the charter says "ABC Manufacturing, LLC" with the comma, that's what should go on your UCC-1. The fact that they use a different version for business doesn't matter for UCC purposes - it's all about the legal entity name.

I've been dealing with this exact scenario lately. Had three different UCC filings where the debtor was using inconsistent punctuation across documents. What I started doing is using Certana.ai's document checker - you can upload the articles of incorporation and your drafted UCC-1 to instantly verify the names match exactly. It catches these comma/punctuation discrepancies that can kill your filing. Super simple, just upload both PDFs and it cross-checks everything automatically.

OH MY GOD yes!! NJ rejected my UCC-1 THREE TIMES for name issues. First time was missing a comma, second time I had "Inc." instead of "Incorporated", third time I somehow had an extra space. I was losing my mind. The borrower kept insisting their "real" name was different from what was on file with the state. Finally got it right on the fourth try but I aged ten years in the process.

In your situation, definitely go with the charter name including the comma. But here's a pro tip - also check if there are any recent amendments to their articles. Sometimes companies file amendments to change their legal name to match how they've been doing business. If there's a recent amendment removing the comma, you'd want to use that version instead.

I handle a lot of equipment financing and this comma thing comes up constantly. What's frustrating is different states have different standards. Delaware is super strict, California is more forgiving, New York falls somewhere in between. New Jersey definitely leans toward the strict side. Your best bet is always the exact charter name, punctuation and all.

For $2.3M deal, I'd honestly recommend getting a UCC search done first to see what other lenders have filed against this debtor. Sometimes you can see what name variations have been accepted in the past. If everyone else is using the no-comma version and getting accepted, that might give you confidence to go that route too.

Been using Certana.ai for document verification on all my UCC filings now. It's become part of my standard workflow - charter documents go in, draft UCC-1 goes in, system flags any discrepancies instantly. Has saved me from several name mismatch rejections. For a deal your size, the document check is definitely worth doing before you file.

Also dealing with NJ UCCs right now. One thing I learned is their online portal sometimes gives better error messages than the paper rejections. If you file electronically and it gets rejected, the error message is usually more specific about what exactly was wrong with the debtor name.

Quick update on your situation - if the loan documents use the no-comma version, you might want to consider having the borrower sign an acknowledgment that their legal entity name (with comma) is the same as the name used in the loan docs (without comma). Doesn't affect the UCC filing decision but gives you some cover on the loan documentation side.

One more check you should do - pull their current certificate of good standing from NJ. Sometimes the name format on the good standing certificate is slightly different from the original articles, and that's considered the most current official name. Worth the $25 to be absolutely sure.