Why should you hire a professional registered agent provider? Our registered agent manager gives his top five reasons:
1. Mitigate Risk
Many business owners choose not to appoint themselves or a company representative as the registered agent due to the potential risk of legal service being mishandled. Using an experienced registered agent provider like Capitol Services can help ensure that legal service is promptly delivered to your company’s legal representatives. Additionally, many registered agent providers offer companies online access to the documents received on their behalf, making it easy for a company’s legal representatives to view past legal service.
2. Available During Business Hours
A registered agent must be available for the receipt of legal service during regular business hours. Should you appoint yourself or a company representative as the registered agent, you will need to ensure that this requirement is met. By hiring a professional registered agent provider, you will avoid this headache. The provider will be open during regular business hours to receive legal service on behalf of your company.
3. Physical Address in Every State
State laws require a company to appoint and maintain a registered agent with a physical address in each state in which it is registered to conduct business. However, many companies do not have a physical address in each state in which they conduct business to use as the registered agent address. For this reason, it is often necessary to hire a professional registered agent provider with offices in each state to act as the registered agent.
4. Keep the State Up-To-Date
It is imperative for your company’s registered agent information on file with the Secretary of State (or other state office) to always be up-to-date. If you or a company representative are appointed as the registered agent and your address changes or the representative leaves the company, you will need to make the necessary filing with the appropriate state office to update your company’s registered agent information as soon as possible. If you fail to remember to do this, you run the risk of having time-sensitive legal documents delivered to the wrong person or address. By hiring a professional registered agent provider like Capitol Services, you can avoid this headache. Should the registered agent provider’s address change in a state, it will make the necessary filing with the state to update your company’s registered agent information for you.
5. Avoid Embarrassment
Lawsuits and other legal notices are generally served on a company at its registered agent’s address. The registered agent receives the legal service (which is often delivered by a process server) on behalf of the company. It can be embarrassing for a process server (often a law enforcement officer) to show up at your residence or place of business to deliver a lawsuit. In order to avoid this embarrassment, many business owners prefer to hire a professional registered agent provider like Capitol Services rather than appointing themselves or a company representative as the registered agent.