What are “Standard Search Logic” and the Model Administrative Rules?
UCC, Online UCC System, Revised Article 9The amount of liens filed in a given state’s filing office can number in the millions making accuracy, and the ability to uncover name variations, paramount when analyzing search results. Each individual Secretary of State filing office has a set of rules called “standard search logic” that determines what search results will show for a given search. Here’s the official definition:
Standard Search Logic: The search logic used by a filing office to determine which filings will appear on an official UCC search of that jurisdiction.
The Model Administrative Rules (MARS) were developed by the International Association of Commercial Administrators (IACA) to standardize search logic for all state filing offices, which was one of the goals of Revised Article 9. Adoption of these rules is, unfortunately, not mandatory, but MARS are still important because they set the framework for standard search logic. Standard search logic sets rules for how words, abbreviations and symbols will be interpreted and delivered as search results by a search engine.
Here are a few examples of MARS search logic:
- Spaces and punctuation are disregarded
- “&”equates to “and”
- No distinction between upper and lower case letters
- Words and abbreviations at the end of an organization name that indicate the existence or nature of the organization (“noise words”) such as inc, llc, association, incorporated etc. are disregarded (but note that MARS leaves it to the states to determine what constitutes these “noise words”). Most if not all states recognize the following as “noise words”: Corp., Corporation, Incorporated, Inc., Limited Liability Company, L.L.C., Limited Partnership, L.P .
Keeping track of each state’s standard search logic can be a chore, and many people choose to use a UCC service provider to ensure they’re getting the most out of their search results. The FCS online UCC search system has the broad-based search tools (like wild cards and truncated search) you need to uncover name variations and assure you’re getting the results you need.
[Image Source: Official IACA Logo]
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