CALIFORNIA SECRETARY OF STATE IMPROVES ACCESS TO BUSINESS ENTITY DATA

Owners of corporations and limited liability companies (LLCs) formed or qualified to do business in California should be aware of recent changes by the California Secretary of State that increase public access to information about these business entities. A more powerful and expanded online search system provides immediate access to more than 5.3 million records relating to corporations, LLCs, and limited partnerships, along with almost 5 million downloadable PDF images of Statements of Information. Owners who have personal information on file may want to modify their entity details and their Statements of Information to protect their privacy.

Aerlex’s corporate paralegal, Susan Orozco-Neu, says the updated online system, launched in mid-December 2016, now includes a California Business Search tool that allows easy online access to these documents. The PDF images of Statements of Information include the last Statement of Information filed, and, if the last Statement of Information was a “no change” Statement, the last complete Statement is also online. Previously, customers had to submit requests in-person or via mail to retrieve copies of Statements of Information for corporations and LLCs and obtaining the documents could take days or even weeks. Now, the information is available online and the opportunity for browsing business entity information is vastly simplified. As Secretary of State Alex Padilla said in his announcement of the new tool on December 13, 2016, “This is a major step forward for transparency and makes access to business records just a click away.” In addition to PDF images, LLC management details now available online include whether a limited liability company is manager-managed or member-managed.

Also during 2016, the California Secretary of State adopted updated Statement of Information forms for corporations and LLCs. These forms have revised instructions and information regarding the six-month filing period when new Statements of Information are due.

Aerlex Law Group President Stephen Hofer said that business owners who are concerned about privacy may want to use an individual or company as Agent for Service of Process which will allow the business to use the agent’s address as the entity’s business and mailing address. Aerlex is pleased to offer Aerlex clients the use of the firm’s business address if confidentiality is a concern for them. Please contact us if you would like to take advantage of this service.

If you have questions regarding these important changes, need help establishing a corporation or LLC, or require assistance with business entity maintenance and filing Statements of Information, please contact Susan Orozco-Neu at 310-392-5200 or sorozco-neu@aerlex.com.