Due Diligence Services

With our broad range of due diligence searches and charting capabilities, you can rely on us as your partner throughout the entire deal—saving you time, hassle, and money.


Why is due diligence important?

Recent court decisions have shown that deals in the works for years can be scuttled by a single missing document, highlighting the critical importance of thorough, and meticulous, due diligence. We conduct the most accurate, timely, and thorough searches (including, legal and financial due diligence, reputational due diligence, enhanced due diligence, real estate property due to diligence, and UCC) so you can proceed with confidence.

Legal Due Diligence

We offer services to help you identify and mitigate legal abilities that could prevent you from closing on large financial transactions.

  • UCC Searches and Filings: A UCC search conducted at the appropriate state filing office and prior to a transaction closing is critical to notify lenders of a possible conflict in collateral interest.
  • UCC Searches to Reflect: These provide early assurance that the UCC filings will be found in the public record under the exact, true, and correct debtor name.
  • Fixture Filing Searches: This search is performed for filings with collateral considered to be fixtures or property permanently attached to real estate.
  • Tax Lien Searches: Taxes owed at the federal, state, or local level can result in liens on all the property belonging loan individual or business entity.
  • Judgment Lien Searches: A judgment or decree rendered by a court can become a judgment lien on the real or personal property of the judgment debtor.
  • Litigation Searches: Active cases, open court actions. and pending suits all threaten to encumber property being pledged as collateral or can seriously impact a debtor's solvency.

  • Tribal Searches: UCC and Fixture Fi ing Searches are specific to act1vit1es and operations occurring on tribal lands and/or to members of a federally recognized tribe that may exist exclusively within the self-governing tribal court system.
  • Bankruptcy Searches: The inclusion of a borrower's name as a petitioner in a bankruptcy proceeding is a red flag as to a debtor's solvency
  • Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) Lien Searches: The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) may bring civil action in federal district court in cases of violation of the Employee provisions, such as the failure of a plan administrator or employer to make the appropriate contributions to employee benefit plans.
  • Good Standings: Retrieving a Certificate of Good Standing confirms that a business is properly registered, up to date with state reports and fees, and authorized to transact business in a particular state
  • Bring Down Letters: This confirms that the initial Comfort Letter, which declares the financial soundness of a company, is still in good standing
  • Charter Documents: These documents confirm the correct legal names of borrowers, confirm officers and corporate structure, and verify domesticity.

Real Estate Property Due Diligence

When a transaction involves real estate, we research information on the owner, value, and liens on the property so you can mitigate your risk.

  • Owner Verification Searches: Provides the information needed to identify the current owner of a property and obtain a full legal Land description.
  • Open Mortgage Searches: Provides all open mortgages and any subsequent related documents.
  • Owner/Mortgage Searches: Details the current property owner and all mortgages or deeds of trust against the property.
  • Owner and Encumbrance Searches: Identifies the current owner of all liens against the property.
  • Co-Op Purchase and Refinance Searches: These packages of legal and real estate due diligence searches on multiple names are reflective of the co-op organizational structure and unique from other forms of real estate ownership.
  • 10-Year Grantee/Grantor Searches: Lists all property bought and sold by a specific individual or entity for a specific time period-normally 10 years.
  • Chain of Title: Provides the history of owners of record from a specific date forward.
  • Tax Assessor Searches: Finds the assessed value of the property and whether taxes are current.
  • EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA) Lien Searches: Liens can be placed on all real property belonging to a person found liable for costs related to environmental damage. Generally, this applies to cleanup of what are known as "Superfund" hazardous and polluted properties.
  • Mechanics Lien Searches: Looks for liens placed against a home or property by a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier to ensure payment for their work and materials. Mechanics liens can be filed without a lawsuit.

Motor Vehicle Titling Services

We provide specialized services for motor vehicle and equipment origination, transfer and release of titles and liens.

  • Ownership Identification: Confirm ownership of an asset, transfer ownership and perfect a security interest on an asset.
  • Transaction Support: Support and services during M&A transactions, on repossession titling cases, on refinance projects and other cases involving motor vehicle and equipment assets or involving fleet pledged as collateral.
  • Title Transfers (Title Only): Service to change ownership on the title and add a lien.
  • State Transfers: Service to transfer title to another state with a lien add.
  • Title and Registration: Service to perform a lease buy out, ensuring title is properly perfected. Title and Registration includes executing transfer of ownership, new vehicle registration and adding a lien holder.
  • Lien Adds (Lien Filing): Service to perfect a security interest on the vehicle by adding the lender/lien holder to the title.
  • VIN Searches: Service to verify existing lien on a vehicle.
  • Duplicate Titles: Service to obtain proof of title or a replacement title.
  • Repossession Titling: Service to change titles from the name of a borrower to the name of the lien holder.
     

Reputational Due Diligence

We'll find potentially damaging information that is publicly available in the media but not tracked by a government agency as part of their due diligence process.

  • Negative News Searches: Combs through press outlets and alerts you to any red flags or negative information that could affect a business's reputation and be financial y impactful.
  • Media Searches: This ensures that the public record of a person in association with a business 01 activity is consistent with what's been represented to the interested party.

Intellectual Property (IP) Due Diligence

We'll help you understand the intellectual property assets of an acquisition target so you can accurately derive valuations during M&A deals.

  • Trademark Searches and Filings: Describes the trademarked phrasing and design-listing any encumbrances that may impact its viability as pledged collateral.
  • Copyright Searches and Filings: Verifies ownership and registration of copyright titles, and alerts you to any recorded documents that might affect them.
  • Patent Searches and Filings: Uncovers or confirms the ownership of patented inventions and any security agreements that may encumber them.

AML/KYC Due Diligence

We verify the identity and business history of individuals you're considering doing business with.

  • Politically Exposed Persons Searches: Individuals who are public facing and associated with a business increase risk for the company. This search audits a person's public function and identifies potential abuse of their position.
  • Patriot Act/OFAC Searches: Determines if an individual is on the US government's watch list by searching the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) database.
  • Anti-Money Laundering Searches: Examines international watch lists for suspicious money placement, layering, and integration.
  • Regulatory Agency Searches: Determines any known infringements and sanctions from international regulatory agencies.

Industry-Specific Due Diligence

We provide specialized services that will help ensure proper due diligence and are especially relevant when your deal involves assets or parties in certain industries.

  • FAA Searches: Conducts multiple searches on an aircraft, since separate liens can be placed on the airframe and each engine if the aircraft's horsepower exceeds 500 hp.
  • US Coast Guard Searches: Searches the US Coast Guard National Vessel Documentation Center to obtain an Abstract of Title that shows all bills of sale, mortgages, and notices of claim of lien that have been filed and recorded by the Coast Guard.
  • Hospital Lien Searches: Looks for liens that a hospital may have filed against an individual to recover the costs of emergency and other continuing medical services.
  • Agricultural Lien Searches: This uncovers liens on agricultural assets, such as crops or livestock, that do not qualify as fixtures and are not considered part of the land or other real assets.
  • Taxi Searches: This includes UCC, fixture filings, federal tax liens, state tax liens, and judgment liens where medallions are being used as collateral.

Due Diligence Essentials for M&A

Watch the video to get a brief overview of what due diligence is, why you should do it, and what could happen if you fail to research your deal prior to closing.

 

Thorough Searches & Simplified Process

Experienced the Deal

Our service team has an average of 19 years' experience in the industry. We understand the level of service and expertise you need, and anticipate when you need it.

Always Available

Deals push beyond the hours of 9 to 5-and so do we. We're there to support you anytime, every time.

Accuracy is a Must

Our reputation is founded on our commitment and dedication to getting every task done thoroughly and without errors. With us, nothing falls through the cracks.

Talk to a Specialist

Have a specific question about a product? A CT Specialist will follow up with a custom quote along with a comprehensive assessment of your needs.