mi1CorporationServices, Inc. - Registered Agent

The Registered Agent

A Registered Agent, or resident agent or statutory agent, as the law calls it in various states, is an individual or a business that is designated by you to receive Service of Process (SOP), important notices from the state, or other statutorily required notices for your business. One might question the necessity of a Registered Agent, however, legislatures across the country looked at the big picture in the creation and requirements of having a Registered Agent. That big picture included the obvious - - - a good company will grow from a small business to a big business. As such, when that company grows, and has thousands of members, if Service of Process needed to be initiated, who would it go to? Who would be responsible? The answer: The Registered Agent.

As a small business owner, however, your vision may not have included a Registered Agent. In fact, you may be asking yourself, can’t I be my own Registered Agent. Well, technically, the answer is yes if you live in the state that your business entity is formed. Nevertheless, most legislatures really intended the Registered Agent to be a third party at an off-site location.

The Pitfalls of Being Your Own Registered Agent

The reason why many companies use a Registered Agent that is a third party and at an off-site location is because of the legal paperwork that they handle and is responsible for, the first being Service of Process. Service of Process is the procedure used when a business entity is a party in a legal action; such actions including lawsuits and summons. Just imagine, you wouldn’t want a Sherriff’s deputy or some other process server appearing at your place of business in front of your customers and employees saying, “you’re being sued - - - you’ve been served.” Many employees of big businesses NEVER know how frequently the company has been sued, and neither should your employees either, if you get sued. Depending on what the situation is at your place of business, employees seeing a law suit served can lead to adverse reactions, rumors, and some of your best may even quit assuming the worst.

...employees seeing a law suit served can lead to adverse reactions, rumors, and some of your best may even quit assuming the worst.

In many states, failure to turn in such reports can cause your business entity to be out of good standing, administratively suspended, or worse, being penalized.

mi1Corporation Services, Inc. can be your Registered Agent starting at $50.00 per year.

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Other Levels of Service

Registered Agents also perform other duties, however, levels of service vary among Registered Agents. One such duty is making sure reports, such as Annual Reports, which are required by the state are turned in on time. In many states, failure to turn in such reports can cause your business entity to be out of good standing, administratively suspended, or worse, being penalized. Registered Agents alert their customers to such deadlines.

Moreover, another service provided is Registered Office service. This is a needed service, especially when your business entity is formed in one state and you physically live in another.

There Are Other Considerations to Why You Should Hire a Registered Agent

Many states require the Registered Agent to have a physical address in the state of formation. As such, if you start a Delaware corporation and live in Arizona, you will have no other choice but to hire a Registered Agent in Delaware.

If your business is now going to operate in multiple states. Not all business actions require you to qualify in each state, however, if you do qualify in another state, you will need to have a Registered Agent for that state.

If you travel frequently or have nonstandard business hours, you should have a Registered Agent. In most states, time is of the essence concerning legal notices. A Registered Agent is there to promptly receive legal notices to preserve your legal rights.

Moving? A Registered Agent with Registered Office service saves you on filing fees and costs associated with address changes.

In this day and age, confidentiality is important to many people. The information provided to forma a business entity is public record. By using a Registered Agent, you can limit how much information is made of the public record.

Registered Agent

The Registered Agent

The Pitfalls of Being Your Own Registered Agent

mi1Corporation Services, Inc. can be your Registered Agent starting at $50.00 per year.

Other Levels of Service

There Are Other Considerations to Why You Should Hire a Registered Agent

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