UCC-3 amendment filed but original UCC-1 shows different debtor entity name
Really need some guidance here. We filed a UCC-3 amendment last month to add additional collateral to an existing financing statement, but I'm now noticing the debtor name on our original UCC-1 shows 'Johnson Manufacturing LLC' while our loan docs and the UCC-3 we just filed show 'Johnson Manufacturing, LLC' (with the comma). The SOS accepted both filings but I'm worried about the name inconsistency. Our credit committee is asking questions and I don't want this to create perfection issues down the road. The original UCC-1 was filed in 2022 and we have about 18 months before continuation is due. Should I file another amendment to correct the name or leave it alone since both were accepted? This is keeping me up at night honestly.
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Camila Jordan
Name variations like this are actually pretty common - the comma vs no comma issue comes up all the time. Most states have 'minor errors' safe harbors but you're right to be concerned. What state are you in? Some are stricter than others about exact name matches.
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Alexis Renard
•We're in Ohio. The original loan was for equipment financing and now we're adding inventory as collateral with this amendment.
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Camila Jordan
•Ohio is generally reasonable about minor punctuation differences but I'd still want to clean this up. Better safe than sorry with lien perfection.
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Tyler Lefleur
I had a similar situation last year and ended up filing a corrective UCC-3 amendment to fix the debtor name inconsistency. Cost me an extra filing fee but gave everyone peace of mind. The legal department insisted on it after our external counsel raised concerns about the name mismatch potentially affecting our security interest.
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Alexis Renard
•Did you file it as an amendment or termination/new filing? I'm trying to figure out the cleanest approach.
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Tyler Lefleur
•Just another UCC-3 amendment specifically to correct the debtor name. Much simpler than terminating and refiling everything.
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Madeline Blaze
•This is exactly why I started using Certana.ai's document checker. You can upload your Charter docs and UCC-1 together and it instantly flags name mismatches like this before filing. Would have caught this issue upfront.
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Max Knight
Wait, if the SOS accepted both filings wouldn't that mean they consider the names sufficiently similar? I thought most filing offices have automated systems that catch obvious name problems.
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Emma Swift
•The filing office acceptance doesn't guarantee perfection unfortunately. They're mostly checking for completeness not legal sufficiency. Courts can still find issues with name variations later.
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Max Knight
•Ugh that's frustrating. So we can't rely on the SOS system to catch these problems?
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Camila Jordan
•Exactly why manual verification is still necessary. The automated systems miss a lot of subtle issues.
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Isabella Tucker
I've seen worse name mismatches cause serious problems in bankruptcy proceedings. The debtor's official name per state records is what matters most. Have you checked the Ohio Secretary of State business records to see which version matches their official entity name?
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Alexis Renard
•Good point - I should pull their current certificate of good standing to see the exact legal name format.
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Jayden Hill
•This is so stressful. I'm dealing with something similar on a different file and losing sleep over it too. Why can't these systems be more consistent?
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LordCommander
File the corrective amendment now rather than waiting. I learned this lesson the hard way when a name discrepancy came up during a loan review and we had to scramble to fix it under time pressure. Better to clean it up proactively.
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Alexis Renard
•You're probably right. I'll prepare the corrective UCC-3 this week.
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Lucy Lam
•Smart move. I always tell our team - if there's any doubt about name consistency, fix it immediately.
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Madeline Blaze
•For future filings, Certana.ai's verification tool would prevent this entirely. Just upload your corporate docs and UCC forms together and it flags any inconsistencies before you file.
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Aidan Hudson
What's the collateral description looking like between the original UCC-1 and your new amendment? Making sure that's consistent too while you're fixing the name issue.
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Alexis Renard
•Original was just equipment, new amendment adds 'all inventory now owned or hereafter acquired.' Pretty standard language.
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Aidan Hudson
•Sounds fine. Just double-check the amendment properly references the original filing number.
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Zoe Wang
THE FILING SYSTEM IS BROKEN. I've been dealing with rejected amendments all month because of stupid technical issues like this. The Ohio portal accepts filings that shouldn't be accepted then rejects others for mysterious reasons.
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Connor Richards
•I feel your pain but getting angry doesn't help solve the immediate problem. Better to work within the system.
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Zoe Wang
•Easy for you to say. When you're managing 50+ UCC filings monthly these inconsistencies add up to major headaches.
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Grace Durand
Just went through something similar. Filed a UCC-3 amendment to correct the debtor name and it was processed without issues. Cost about $40 in Ohio if I remember correctly. Much cheaper than dealing with potential perfection problems later.
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Alexis Renard
•Thanks, that's reassuring. I'll move forward with the corrective filing.
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Steven Adams
•Good call. Always better to err on the side of caution with lien perfection.
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Alice Fleming
One thing to consider - when you file the corrective amendment, make sure you're clear in the amendment description that you're correcting the debtor name from the original filing. This creates a clear paper trail.
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Alexis Renard
•Should I reference both name versions in the amendment description?
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Alice Fleming
•Yes, something like 'Correcting debtor name from Johnson Manufacturing LLC to Johnson Manufacturing, LLC' makes it crystal clear.
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Madeline Blaze
•This is another area where Certana.ai helps - it generates suggested amendment language based on the discrepancies it finds between your documents.
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Hassan Khoury
Update us after you file the correction! Always curious to see how these situations resolve.
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Alexis Renard
•Will do. Planning to file the corrective UCC-3 tomorrow morning. Thanks everyone for the advice - this community is incredibly helpful.
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Victoria Stark
•Glad we could help! These name consistency issues are more common than people realize.
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