(a) The filing of an initial financing statement in the office specified in Section 55-9-501 NMSA 1978 continues the effectiveness of a financing statement filed before July 1, 2001 if:

(1) the filing of an initial financing statement in that office would be effective to perfect a security interest under this act;

(2) the pre-effective-date financing statement was filed in an office in another state or another office in this state; and

(3) the initial financing statement satisfies Subsection (c) of this section.

(b) The filing of an initial financing statement under Subsection (a) of this section continues the effectiveness of the pre-effective-date financing statement:

(1) if the initial financing statement is filed before July 1, 2001, for the period provided in Section 55-9-403 NMSA 1978 as it existed prior to July 1, 2001, with respect to a financing statement; and

(2) if the initial financing statement is filed after July 1, 2001, for the period provided in Section 55-9-515 NMSA 1978 with respect to an initial financing statement.

(c) To be effective for purposes of Subsection (a) of this section, an initial financing statement must:

(1) satisfy the requirements of Sections 55-9-501 through 55-9-526 NMSA 1978 for an initial financing statement;

(2) identify the pre-effective-date financing statement by indicating the office in which the financing statement was filed and providing the dates of filing and file numbers, if any, of the financing statement and of the most recent continuation statement filed with respect to the financing statement; and

(3) indicate that the pre-effective-date financing statement remains effective.

History: Laws 2001, ch. 139, § 150.

OFFICIAL COMMENTS

UCC Official Comments by ALI & the NCCUSL. Reproduced with permission of the PEB for the UCC. All rights reserved.

1. Continuation of Financing Statements Not Filed in Proper Filing Office Under This Article. This section deals with continuing the effectiveness of financing statements that are filed in the proper state and office under former article 9, but which would be filed in the wrong state or in the wrong office of the proper state under this article. Section 9-705(d) provides that, under these circumstances, filing a continuation statement after the effective date of this article in the office designated by former article 9 would not be effective. This section provides the means by which the effectiveness of such a financing statement can be continued if this article governs perfection under the applicable choice of law rule: Filing an initial financing statement in the office specified by section 9-501.

Although it has the effect of continuing the effectiveness of a pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement, an initial financing statement described in this section is not a continuation statement. Rather, it is governed by the rules applicable to initial financing statements. (However, the debtor need not authorize the filing. See section 9-707.) Unlike a continuation statement, the initial financing statement described in this section may be filed any time during the effectiveness of the pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement - even before this article is enacted - and not only within the six months immediately prior to lapse. In contrast to a continuation statement, which extends the lapse date of a filed financing statement for five years, the initial financing statement has its own lapse date, which bears no relation to the lapse date of the pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement whose effectiveness the initial financing statement continues. See subsection (b).

As subsection (a) makes clear, the filing of an initial financing statement under this section continues the effectiveness of a pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement. If the effectiveness of a pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement lapses before the initial financing statement is filed, the effectiveness of the pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement cannot be continued. Rather, unless the security interest is perfected otherwise, there will be a period during which the security interest is unperfected before becoming perfected again by the filing of the initial financing statement under this section.

If an initial financing statement is filed under this section before July 1, 2001, it takes effect on July 1, 2001, (assuming that it is ineffective under former article 9). Note, however, that former article 9 determines whether the filing office is obligated to accept such an initial financing statement. For the reason given in the preceding paragraph, an initial financing statement filed before July 1, 2001, does not continue the effectiveness of a pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement unless the latter remains effective on July 1, 2001. Thus, for example, if the effectiveness of the pre-July 1, 2001, financing statement lapses before July 1, 2001, the initial financing statement would not continue its effectiveness.

2. Requirements of Initial Financing Statement Filed in Lieu of Continuation Statement. Subsection (c) sets forth the requirements for the initial financing statement under subsection (a). These requirements are needed to inform searchers that the initial financing statement operates to continue a financing statement filed elsewhere and to enable searchers to locate and discover the attributes of the other financing statement. The notice-filing policy of this Article applies to the initial financing statements described in this section. Accordingly, an initial financing statement that substantially satisfies the requirements of subsection (c) is effective, even if it has minor errors or omissions, unless the errors or omissions make the financing statement seriously misleading. See Section 9-506 [55-9-506 NMSA 1978].

A single initial financing statement may continue the effectiveness of more than one financing statement filed before this Article's effective date. See Section 1-106 [55-1-106 NMSA 1978] (words in the singular include the plural). If a financing statement has been filed in more than one office in a given jurisdiction, as may be the case if the jurisdiction had adopted former Section 9-401(1) [55-9-401(1) NMSA 1978], third alternative, then an identification of the filing in the central filing office suffices for purposes of subsection (c)(2). If under this Article the collateral is of a type different from its type under former Article 9 as would be the case, e.g., with a right to payment of lottery winnings (a "general intangible" under former Article 9 and an "account" under this Article), then subsection (c) requires that the initial financing statement indicate the type under this Article.

Effective dates. — Laws 2001, ch. 139, § 155 makes the Uniform Commercial Code - Secured Transactions Act effective July 1, 2001.