Why You Should Use a Professional Registered Agent Provider - The KZ Group, LLC

A registered agent is the representative you name for receiving service of process or other documents served upon a company. type entities.

Each time your company is conducting business in a state that requires the business to 'qualify' (file a document that gives them the right to conduct business as a organized business entity) a registered agent must be appointed.  

We all have visions of the process server from movies and television shows, so we will dispense with the dramatics and discuss more broadly the types of documents that the process server may 'serve' your company. broadly defined as any legal proceeding, legal notice, or official government communication presented to the company within the jurisdiction of a state. registering your corporation from one state to another is called qualifying or filing a certificate of authority. Within these documents it is required that the business appoint a registered agent or registered office.

Often a business owner will appoint an employee or relative in the state to act as their registered agent.Although this may save you somewhere between $100-$300 dollars a year depending on the company that you use, the risks to you, your friends and company can be far more significant. So why should you consider paying the annual fee that a registered agent provider charges?

PRIVACY

The registered agent that you appoint becomes public record. The name and address of the registered agent is easily obtained on the Internet. This means that their personal information becomes readily available to any having access to an Internet connection. Thousands of miles from where your company is registered, someone call pull the information the name and address of your agent right from their living room! This is not the only place such information can be obtained. A simple search of the records of the filing office are available to anyone walking into the agency. Therefore naming an someone as an agent publishes their name and address in a forum that is easily accessed.

Documents that are served are served either by a peace officer or paid process server. Even very large multi-national companies select professional registered agent providers to avoid the discomfort that occurs when employees or customers are witness to legal summons being served. the assumption that the registered agent does not matter, as they do not plan on getting served. Although this may be true, we live in a litigious society where lawsuits are common. , it is very common to find yourself speaking to a process server.

EMBARRASSMENT

How Would you feel if your employees, customers or vendors where in your place of business when a process server entered. Remember that even if a lawsuit is unwarranted or has not merit, documents must be served. If your customers and employees are present when these documents are delivered what image or perception will they form when they see a uniformed police officer or delivering legal documents upon your business.

ACCESSIBLE

Is your registered agent available during "normal office hours"? A registered agent must be available at the address listed every business day from around 9 AM - 5 PM to accept legal documents. This can not be a representative of this person, for legal process to occur. Will the appointment affect the ability of your registered agent to travel or take time off? have to serve them at other locations such as their jobs?

TIME

Your registered may have to go to the post office to sign for certified letters and registered mail if they are unable to do so when the postman attempts to deliver documents in the case of service by mail. to the post office are part of their responsibility as your agent?

EXPERIENCE

Your registered agent should not accept documents that are not properly served. Would your agent know what to do if the name listed on the documents is not the name of your company, but rather a similar named company? Your acceptance of such documents puts you at legal risk.

COST

Failure to take action quickly on served documents can affect be costly. If documents are misplaced or not sent to you immediately you could miss critical legal dates that could result in civil or criminal sanctions, effect your license or standing within the state, and summary judgment. (when you fail to appear and the court automatically rules against you.)

VALUE ADDED SERVICES

Some registered agent companies provide additional services to assist you in managing your company, maintaining compliance, and record safekeeping.

• An on-line calendaring system that emails you to remind you about important filing dates
• Annual report due dates
• Possible taxes that you may be subject to in a state
• Needed permits and refiling due dates
• Form Libraries to Assist you with legal documents you may need saving you legal fees
• An on-line archive of documents received on your behalf with additional information such as date and time served and actual copies of the document received.