Risk Management Blog

Due diligence service providers often field phone calls from frantic customers who are in desperate need of a certificate of status, copy of a corporate charter or other corporate documents. Sadly, as much as we’d love to be able to provide these documents to our customers on a same day basis, it is usually not in our power to do so.

Here’s why.

State filing offices typically provide two categories of service for corporate documents: mail in service and counter service. Mail in service is when an individual completes a request form for corporate documents (usually the form is available online) and mails their request along with a check to the state filing office for completion. Turnaround time for mail in service varies depending upon the state and their volume of orders at any given time.

Counter service refers to when an individual submits the request for corporate documents in person at the state filing office. A counter service request receives priority processing over a mail in request, but many states do not offer a “while-you-wait” service option even for counter service requests. In many cases, an individual must submit their request over-the-counter and return to pick up the requested documents once the state fulfills the order. The fulfillment process could take anywhere from one day to a couple of weeks.

Furthermore, state and county-level governments have endured overwhelming budget shortfalls over the last several years, dramatically affecting their ability to deliver timely public services. These budget woes often translate into slowed turnaround times for public record information requests.

Please see our previous blog post, “Tired of Slow UCC and Corporate Processing Times?” to learn about three strategies for getting your hands on the documents you need in time for your scheduled closing date.

Check back next week when we debunk another common misconception about UCC and Corporate Due Diligence!

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