By Jennifer Reuting, author of Limited Liability Companies for Dummies™
Do all managers' names and addresses need to be on the Articles of Incorporation or just the registered agent's? In addition, why is it better to have a registered agent outside the LLC?
Depending on the state, you will generally have to state whether or not your LLC is manager-managed or member-managed and will have to list either the initial manager or member (respectively) in the Articles of Organization. Keep in mind though that this information can easily be changed later on.
As for the second question, I get asked about this ALL the time. Your registered agent is where all of your company's service of process and state filings will be sent. Generally, registered agents have very specific state-imposed responsibilities such as the "regular business hours " they need to maintain and strict record-keeping requirements. If you don't comply with these then you could face serious repercussions. For example, if you decide to go on a business trip and there is no one at your office during the required business hours to receive service of process then you could theoretically lose the lawsuit by default and spend thousands of dollars getting a judgment reversed assuming you can get it reversed at all!
Additionally, a good registered agent will make sure you stay current on your state filings and forward government-related mail to you. MyLLC.com only charges $99 per year for registered agent service and, in my opinion, the cost is well worth the peace of mind whether you use MyLLC.com or someone else!
