Need to track down the registration of a Corporation or Limited Liability Company (LLC)?
How do you find it f you don’t know where it’s registered? Where should you start?
Most U.S. Corporations still file in the U.S. and choose a state to file their primary registration. That state then considers it a “domestic” corporation. If it subsequently files in other states, those states considers it a “foreign” corporation in their state.
If you’re looking for a registration and you know the domestic state you can easily find it on our “Corporations and Companies” page where we provide an easy link to all of the searchable online state corporation (and LLC) databases.
So what do you do if you don’t know where a corporation is filed domestically, in other words, where their primary registration is located?
The best option is to pick a state that provides excellent access to online registration AND is a state where many U.S. Corporations want to do business because it’s so populous.
That state is Florida.
The Florida Division of Corporations Document Searches page is easy to use, provides you with a large number of search options, and even gives you copies of filed documents– all for free!
We were asked recently to find the registration for G.A.C. Financing, the company that provided lending for Chrysler automobiles thirty years ago.
It turned out to be a daunting task as there have been a large number of mergers in, mergers out, domestic state transfers, involvement with Daimler Benz (Mercedes), separation from Daimler Benz, and all manner of complicated transactions along the way.
All of this was traceable by using the Florida Corporations database. That either provided us with the documentation for each merger or transfer, or gave us enough information about where each corporation was filed domestically so we could go right to that state and get all the details.
In the end it took no more than an hour’s work– all done online using SearchSystems.net, and at no cost.
So check it out when you have a chance. Here’s the URL again:
Florida Division of Corporations Document Searches
By the way, the U.S. Supreme Court has determined that corporations are people, but we’re beginning to have our doubts. We say good morning each day to Search Systems, Inc., but it has yet to say good morning back. Just rude.