Why Your Company Needs a Registered Agent

Why Your Company Needs A Registered Agent

Too often when a person or their accountant forms a new corporate entity, some of the legal issues are ignored - particularly the need for a independent, professional registered agent.

We recommend you engage a law firm as your registered agent.

With a law firm serving as the registered agent for your corporate entity, you will have the peace of mind that you will receive timely and prompt notice if your corporate entity is served with a summon and an attorney will be able to immediately to review and assess the lawsuit and provide you with legal advice on how to answer the summons.

In contrast, if you serve as your own registered agent, you may save some money, but you put your company at risk. You risk having a summons being served without your knowledge and a critical deadline may pass before the summons reaches the appropriate party. Without an independent, affiliated registered agent, a summons is generally permitted to be served on any (adult) person at your principle place of business - and you have no assurance that the summons may wind up sitting in some one's inbox for days. Worse yet, you may suffer the embarrassment of having a summons served at your home, since some jurisdictions permit a summons to be served on any adult at the home of any officer of a corporate entity.

Having a lawyer serve as your independent, professional registered agent is also beneficial because a business lawyer should help your corporate entity maintain its separate legal identity for tax purposes and shield the corporate liabilities from your personal life - a "corporate shield". To maintain this corporate shield, a corporate entity must comply with certain statutory requirements, including, but not limited to filing an annual report and/or corporate franchise tax return. A good business attorney should also address and help you comply with the recommended corporate formalities (i.e., certain legal principles) generally recognized in your jurisdiction. An important - but often overlooked - corporate formality is the production and maintenance of corporate minutes for the annual (and special) meetings of a company's governing board and stakeholders (i.e. shareholders or members). With a good business lawyer serving as your company’s registered agent, you should receive the legal advice you need to maintain your corporate shield and protect your personal assets.

At the Chicago business law firm of Griffith & Jacobson, LLC, we charge a flat fee to service as corporate entity's registered agent in Illinois. For the 2010, our fee for this service is $250 per year. With Griffith & Jacobson, LLC, you should be secure in the knowledge that any court actions which may be taken against your company and served on us as your registered agent, will be addressed promptly - you will be notified and we will advise you on how to take care of the matter quickly. As part of our service, we will also prepare your corporate entity's annual report with the Illinois Secretary of State and ensure the recommended annual corporate minutes (resolutions) are completed and maintained in your corporate minute book.

If you would like to engage Griffith & Jacobson, LLC to act as your company's registered agent in Illinois, please contact Arieh M. Flemenbaum at:

312-236-8110 or at Contact G&J

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