February 3, 2025 – Two uniform acts – the Uniform Antitrust Pre-Merger Notification Act and the Uniform Mortgage Modification Act – have been approved by the American Bar Association's House of Delegates as "appropriate Acts for those states desiring to adopt the specific substantive law suggested therein." The acts were approved at the ABA's 2025 Midyear Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, January 29 to February 3, 2025. These acts were drafted and approved by the Uniform Law Commission (ULC).
Uniform Antitrust Pre-Merger Notification Act. The Uniform Antitrust Pre-Merger Notification Act creates a simple, non-burdensome mechanism for a state attorney general to receive access to Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) filings at the same time as the federal agencies, and subject to the same confidentiality obligations. Under the Uniform Act, covered entities must provide their HSR filing to the AG contemporaneously with their federal filing. The material filed with the AG is subject to essentially the same confidentiality protections as applicable to the federal agencies, except that an AG that receives HSR materials may share them with any other AG whose state has also adopted this Act. The anticipated effect is to facilitate early information sharing and coordination among state AGs and the federal agencies. The Act will balance the needs of state enforcers for information with the burdens and risks to filers. This Act was approved by the ULC in 2024.
Uniform Mortgage Modification Act. The Uniform Mortgage Modification Act establishes several categories of safe harbor modifications that can be made in recorded mortgages and secured obligations, and the Act outlines the implications of each type of modification. Permissible modifications include extensions of maturity dates, decreases in interest rates, and other changes that are not materially prejudicial to junior interest holders. These changes do not affect the priority of the mortgage. The Act reduces costs and creates straightforward alternatives to foreclosure when possible. This Act was approved by the ULC in 2024.
Information on each of these uniform acts is available at the ULC's website at www.uniformlaws.org.
The Uniform Law Commission, now in its 134th year, provides states with well-conceived and well-drafted legislation that brings clarity and stability to critical areas of state statutory law. The organization comprises more than 300 lawyers, judges, legislators, and law professors, appointed by the states as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, to research, draft and promote enactment of uniform state laws in areas of state law where uniformity is desirable and practical. Since its inception in 1892, the group has promulgated more than 200 acts, among them such bulwarks of state statutory law as the Uniform Commercial Code, the Uniform Probate Code, and the Uniform Partnership Act.
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Contact: Katie Robinson, ULC Senior Director, Strategy & Communications, krobinson@...
Uniform Law Commission / 111 N. Wabash Ave., Suite 1010, Chicago, IL 60602 / 312-450-6600 www.uniformlaws.org
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Katie Robinson
Senior Director for Strategy and Communications
Chicago IL
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