Yes- You must file this change with the Secretary of State where you formed your business, and, if applicable, amend your Operating Agreement to reflect the change in Registered Agent.
A Registered Agent may either be yourself, your attorney, or a third party company that exists to handle such affairs. Often, I recommend a third party company to my clients for the singular purpose that they are very simple to deal with. For less than $100/year, you can get the services of a Registered Agent in your state and not have to publish your personal address on the public Secretary of State database, or worry about whether your trusted attorney is still at the same firm or if you even want to use your attorney again.
When you choose your Registered Agent, if it is someone other than yourself, you need to be sure that that person or company can be relied upon to relay messages and documents to you, the owner, or the Manager of your LLC. Your business’ Registered Agent is a very important role: this person or company is responsible for receiving the official mail of the business such as court filing and subpoenas. According to the State, someone serving your “Registered Agent” is as good as serving you personally (if someone else is your Registered Agent) and the excuses of “well we don’t really check that mailbox very often,” is very often not tolerated.
If for any reason you need to change who is listed as your Registered Agent, it is absolutely vital that you change that listing as soon as the change is effective with the Secretary of State. The change itself is relatively easy, and should take no more than 5-10 minutes to complete and a small filing fee. This is true whether you have an LLC, Texas Series LLC, or PLLC.
If you have questions about your Registered Agent, or any other concerns about your business, San Antonio Small Business Attorney Nathaniel Gilbert can help answer your questions and get you pointed in the right direction. To learn more about Business Law and Services, Click Here. To get in touch with Nate directly, click here.
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