The readers of The Intelligencer voted Davis Law’s CEO as “One of the Best” of BucksMont in the Attorney category for Bucks and Montgomery Counties, PA

Thank you to everyone who voted!

Marshal H. Davis, Esquire, MBA, LLM is a business lawyer. He is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Federal Court (EDPA and WDPA).  A law firm based in Bucks County, PA, Davis Law serves the Greater Philadelphia area and its suburbs in Bucks, Montgomery, Delaware, and Chester Counties, New Jersey, and elsewhere in Pennsylvania.

Davis Law’s primary practice areas include:

• business law
• commercial transactions and contracts
• mergers & acquisitions
• real estate transactions
• startups & entrepreneurial law
• non-profit law and tax-exempt entities
• real estate tax assessment appeals
• tax / taxation
• corporate law

Accordingly, Davis Law advises entrepreneurs, the owners and managers of businesses, and nonprofit leadership to engage in transactions and thoughtfully operate while using strategies to avoid or minimize litigation risks and maximize outcomes.  While the firm focuses on business law, real estate law, and nonprofit law, we can help manage and ‘quarterback’ client matters and collaborate with attorneys in other practice areas.  That way, clients have a streamlined legal services provider while getting advice from experienced practitioners in various areas of law.

Please call Davis Law at 267.482.9595 to set up a free consultation with an attorney.

The post Davis Law CEO Voted “One of the Best” Attorneys of BucksMont 2019 appeared first on Davis Law.

Are you paying too much for your Pennsylvania real estate taxes ?

If so, you can potentially save money year after year by reducing your real estate taxes, while helping to make your home more marketable.

Homeowners and potential buyers in Pennsylvania generally know that they need to pay property taxes on their real estate, that there are two bills they get each year (one for local/township/county, and the other for their school district), and that these taxes at least feel like they are quite high.  Beyond that, real estate taxes can be a mystery.

Your real estate taxes (both bills) are based on the “assessed value” of your property and the “millage rate”.  The millage rate is basically the tax rate that varies by municipality and county, and is the amount of tax per $1,000 of assessed value.  In other words, millage rates are expressed in tenths of a penny.

Assessed Value vs. Actual Dollar Value (Fair Market Value)

The assessed value of a property is different than its actual dollar value or market value.  The assessed value generally will only change when there is construction done, permits made for work, an entire county is re-assessed (like Philadelphia recently), or the assessment is appealed.  To translate the county’s assessed value of your property, you can multiply it by the “common level ratio” which varies by county and is updated annually to reflect overall average increases or decreases in real estate market values.  The number you get is the county’s approximate current dollar value of your property.

Assessed values are not generally changed when a home is purchased or sold, so they may not reflect a home’s actual market value.  If your home is worth less than that number, there may be room to appeal your taxes with your county’s Board of Assessment Appeals to reduce your property’s assessed value based on its current market value.  Put simply, if your home is 10% over-assessed, and you win the appeal, your assessed value will decrease by 10%, and your taxes going forward will be 10% less, and any increases in taxes due to increased millage will be 10% less than they otherwise would have been.  Additionally, mortgage companies factor real estate taxes into approvals of new loans and refinancing, so if you reduce the taxes on a home for sale, it could not only be more attractive to potential buyers, but it would also help with financing (or refinancing) by decreasing the monthly costs of ownership; that can also increase the pool of potential buyers who could get approved for a mortgage to purchase your home.

Examples of other ways to decrease your real estate taxes, in addition to real estate assessment appeals, include the Homestead Exemption, the Farmstead Exemption, and the Nonprofit Exemption.

Please contact Davis Law if you have any questions or if you would like to set up a FREE analysis of your real estate taxes.

In Bucks County, Montgomery County, Chester County, and Delaware County, Pennsylvania, annual real estate tax appeals are due August 1, 2017 for residential properties and commercial properties.  Interim property tax assessment appeal deadlines vary.

Marshal H. Davis, Esq., MBA, LLM is an attorney based in central Bucks County, PA and is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  Marshal is the CEO of Davis Law (www.MHDesq.com).  His primary practice areas include business and corporate law, non-profit law, tax-exempt entities, real estate tax appeals, and other transactional work.  In his spare time, he coaches fencing at Liberty Fencing Club LLC in Warrington, PA. Follow attorney Marshal Davis on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/marshalhdavis

DAVIS LAW
P.O. Box 364
Jamison, PA 18929-0364
Tel: 267.482.9595 / 267.482.9596
Fax: 267.482.9895

http://www.MHDesq.com

Please see the Davis Law Disclaimer page.

This blog, the Davis Law website, including all of the content and materials provided therein, provides information of general interest and is designed to enable you to learn more about the services that Davis Law offers to its clients.  It does not offer legal advice and may constitute attorney advertising.  It is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter.  It is not intended, and should not be used, as a substitute for consultation with legal counsel.  The Davis Law website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice, nor is it intended as a source of advertising or solicitation.

Users of this website and recipients of this information should not act upon it without consulting legal counsel as individual situations and facts may vary.  Neither your use of this website, nor Davis Law’s presentation of the information on the website, nor your receipt of information from the website creates or constitutes an attorney-client relationship or imposes any obligation on Davis Law.  You should not consider this website to be an invitation for an attorney-client relationship, you should not rely on the information provided on this website without first obtaining separate legal advice, and you should always seek the advice of competent legal counsel in your own state.

The post Are you paying too much for your real estate taxes? appeared first on Davis Law.

Marshal Davis is pleased to announce that he has joined the law firm of Powell Trachtman Logan Carrle & Lombardo P.C. as a Principal in the firm’s Corporate, Transactions and Business Planning Department.  The firm is headquartered in King of Prussia, with offices in Cherry Hill and Harrisburg.  Powell Trachtman, founded in 1988, provides a full range of commercial litigation, business and tax planning, transactional, employment law and related services to businesses throughout the region.  Mr. Davis can be reached at mdavis@powelltrachtman.com , and at 610-354-9700.  For more information, see www.powelltrachtman.com .

Marshal Davis is proud to join Powell Trachtman Logan Carrle & Lombardo, P.C. as a Principal as of December 2015.

Powell Trachtman was formed in 1988 by attorneys who believed that the accepted model of what law firms do and how they do it needed to be re-engineered—legal services as they were typically delivered were not consistently adding value to the business clients being served.

We developed a different methodology, comprised of the following precepts:

• We reject the “corporatization” of the practice of law.
• We really focus on the prevention of litigation.
• We reject the dominant trend toward sub-specialization in the law.
• We understand that law firms are service businesses.
• We manage overhead and costs by leveraging technology.

See the Our Approach section of our website for more details.

Our methods work, particularly in challenging times and, as a result, Powell Trachtman has been recognized as one of the most successful firms in the region.

We provide a full range of services to businesses, business owners, executives, and investors, including litigation and dispute resolution, risk management, employment law, business counseling, business transactions, intellectual property protection, real estate transactions, contract drafting, estate planning, and much more. Our clients include large, small, start-up, and mature companies engaged in a wide variety of enterprises. We are regularly retained by insurance carriers to protect the interests of design professionals, accounting firms, law firms, universities, major manufacturers and many other businesses. Our attorneys have been recognized by bar associations, professional associations, law schools and national publications.

For more information on our primary practice areas, our attorneys, and the publications we offer for the guidance of our clients, please click on the buttons at the top of this page.

Most of all, we prevent and, when necessary, solve our clients problems. Please click on the Problems Prevented and Solved section of our website for a sampling of some of our recent accomplishments.

We look forward to working with you.

The post Attorney Marshal Davis (Davis Law) joins Powell Trachtman Logan Carrle & Lombardo P.C. appeared first on Davis Law.

Are you paying too much for your Pennsylvania real estate taxes ?

If so, you can potentially save money year after year by reducing your real estate taxes, while helping to make your home more marketable.

Homeowners and potential buyers in Pennsylvania generally know that they need to pay property taxes on their real estate, that there are two bills they get each year (one for local/township/county, and the other for their school district), and that these taxes at least feel like they are quite high.  Beyond that, real estate taxes can be a mystery.

Your real estate taxes (both bills) are based on the “assessed value” of your property and the “millage rate”.  The millage rate is basically the tax rate that varies by municipality and county, and is the amount of tax per $1,000 of assessed value.  In other words, millage rates are expressed in tenths of a penny.

The assessed value of a property is different than its actual dollar value or market value.  The assessed value generally will only change when there is construction done, permits made for work, an entire county is re-assessed (like Philadelphia recently), or the assessment is appealed.  To translate the county’s assessed value of your property, you can multiply it by the “common level ratio” which varies by county and is updated annually to reflect overall average increases or decreases in real estate market values.  The number you get is the county’s approximate current dollar value of your property.  Assessed values are not generally changed when a home is purchased or sold, so they may not reflect a home’s actual market value.  If your home is worth less than that number, there may be room to appeal your taxes with your county’s Board of Assessment Appeals to reduce your property’s assessed value based on its current market value.  Put simply, if your home is 10% over-assessed, and you win the appeal, your assessed value will decrease by 10%, and your taxes going forward will be 10% less, and any increases in taxes due to increased millage will be 10% less than they otherwise would have been.  Additionally, mortgage companies factor real estate taxes into approvals of new loans and refinancing, so if you reduce the taxes on a home for sale, it could not only be more attractive to potential buyers, but it would also help with financing (or refinancing) by decreasing the monthly costs of ownership; that can also increase the pool of potential buyers who could get approved for a mortgage to purchase your home.

Examples of other ways to decrease your real estate taxes, in addition to real estate assessment appeals, include the Homestead Exemption, the Farmstead Exemption, and the Nonprofit Exemption.

Please contact Davis Law if you have any questions or if you would like to set up a FREE analysis of your real estate taxes.

Marshal H. Davis, Esq., MBA, LLM is an attorney based in central Bucks County, PA and is licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  Marshal is the CEO of Davis Law (www.MHDesq.com).  His primary practice areas include business and corporate law, non-profit law, tax-exempt entities, real estate tax appeals, and other transactional work.  In his spare time, he coaches the Men’s and Women’s Fencing Teams at Swarthmore College and runs Liberty Fencing Club LLC in Warrington.  https://www.linkedin.com/in/marshalhdavis

DAVIS LAW
P.O. Box 364
Jamison, PA 18929-0364
Tel: 267.482.9595 / 267.482.9596
Fax: 267.482.9895

http://www.MHDesq.com

Please see the Davis Law Disclaimer page.

This blog, the Davis Law website, including all of the content and materials provided therein, provides information of general interest and is designed to enable you to learn more about the services that Davis Law offers to its clients.  It does not offer legal advice and may constitute attorney advertising.  It is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice on any subject matter.  It is not intended, and should not be used, as a substitute for consultation with legal counsel.  The Davis Law website does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice, nor is it intended as a source of advertising or solicitation.

Users of this website and recipients of this information should not act upon it without consulting legal counsel as individual situations and facts may vary.  Neither your use of this website, nor Davis Law’s presentation of the information on the website, nor your receipt of information from the website creates or constitutes an attorney-client relationship or imposes any obligation on Davis Law.  You should not consider this website to be an invitation for an attorney-client relationship, you should not rely on the information provided on this website without first obtaining separate legal advice, and you should always seek the advice of competent legal counsel in your own state.

The post Are you paying too much for your real estate taxes? appeared first on Davis Law.

Davis Law is Proud to be a GOLD SPONSOR of 2015 USACFC College Fencing National Championships

Hosted by Liberty Fencing Club & Swarthmore College Fencing Team

The Largest College Fencing Event in the World!

Davis Law is Proud to be a GOLD SPONSOR of 2015 USACFC College Fencing National Championships!  Davis Law‘s CEO Marshal Davis was named a Destination Champion by Visit Bucks County for helping to bring the largest college fencing event in the world to Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  Attorney Davis has served as Pro Bono Chief General Legal Counsel of the USACFC since 2005.  This year’s USACFC College Fencing National Championships is hosted by Liberty Fencing Club LLC and Swarthmore College Fencing Team.  Over forty colleges and universities from around the nation will be represented.  There will be both individual and team events in foil, sabre, and epee, separated into men’s and women’s categories.  The event will be held at the new field house gym behind Bensalem High School on April 11-12, 2015 and is FREE and open to the public.  More information, the list of participating teams, schedule, location, and sponsors are available at the USACFC event page.  Come visit this exciting event and bring the whole family.  Have the unique opportunity to see great athletes, college spirit, Olympians, local vendors, refreshments, a bone marrow drive for the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Registry, Swarthmore Go Green, the first ever USACFC Lifetime Achievement Award, and much, much more!

The United States Association of Collegiate Fencing Clubs (USACFC) was established in 2003 to educate and promote fencing at the collegiate level throughout the United States.  The organization began with 13 teams and has grown to over 45 teams since its inception.

USACFC was formed as a Pennsylvania Nonprofit Corporation in 2005 with guidance from Davis Law’s CEO Marshal H. Davis, Esq., MBA, LLM.  Each year the organization holds a national fencing championship in the host area of one of the member colleges.  This is the largest collegiate fencing event in the word.

DAVIS LAW, located near Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, is pleased to offer clients competitive alternative fee agreements, including fixed fees, contingency fees, and hourly rates.  Please contact our offices via email or telephone for a free initial consultation.  Davis Law’s legal services include various practice areas in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

For more information, please visit:

USACFC: www.USACFC.org

2015 USACFC College Fencing National Championships, Hosted by Liberty Fencing Club and Swarthmore College Fencing Team: www.usacfc.org/this-year-s-championship

Davis Law: www.MHDesq.com

Bucks County Sports Commission: www.visitbuckscounty.com/sports

Liberty Fencing Club LLC: www.LibertyFencingClub.com

Destination Champion Profile: www.visitbuckscounty.com/meetings/bring-home-the-business/destination-champion-marshal-davis

Davis Law is Proud to be a GOLD SPONSOR of 2015 USACFC College Fencing National Championships

The post Davis Law is Proud to be a GOLD SPONSOR of 2015 USACFC College Fencing National Championships appeared first on Davis Law.

Davis Law’s CEO Marshal Davis spoke at the 20th Quarterly IQnection Nonprofit Summit on October 23, 2014, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania.  He spoke about how you can protect your organization and maintain its books and records according to state nonprofit law, IRS 501(c)(3) rules, best practices, and so that your nonprofits can be presented accurately and look good to grant makers.  Marshal also discussed nonprofit law and documentation as it relates to seeking grants for your organization.

Mr. Davis brings a unique perspective to advising nonprofits.  Not only does he have experience with nonprofit clients of various sizes and missions – from idea through start-up through operations through dissolution – but he also has experience serving on various nonprofit boards, volunteering as an officer of nonprofits, grant writing, and leading the management and operation of large scale local, regional, and national events.

DAVIS LAW is a Pennsylvania-based law firm with its primary office located in Jamison, central Bucks County, minutes from the county seat in Doylestown. Davis Law engages in the practice of law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Davis Law’s CEO is Marshal H. Davis, Esquire, MBA, LLM.  He is an attorney licensed to practice law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey and is a native and long-time resident of Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  Dr. Davis’s primary practice areas include business law, non-profit law, tax-exempt entities, real estate tax assessment appeals, and corporate law.  In his spare time, he coaches the Men’s and Women’s Fencing Teams at Swarthmore College and runs Liberty Fencing Club LLC in Warrington with his wife Helen.

In addition to running this Bucks County law firm, in Spring 2013, Dr. Davis was an instructor at Temple University’s Beasley School of Law for the practicum of the JD-level Nonprofit Corporations class, and will continue that work during the 2014-2015 academic year at Temple Law.

The post Marshal Davis Speaks at 20th Quarterly IQnection Nonprofit Summit | Non Profit | Tax-Exempt Organizations | Doylestown appeared first on Davis Law.

Davis Law’s CEO Marshal H. Davis Admitted to American MENSA as a Member

Davis Law congratulates is CEO for being selected as a member by MENSA.  For more information on Attorney Davis, please see the “About Davis Law” page.  Below is a quote about the organization from its website (http://www.us.mensa.org):

With more than 57,000 members, American Mensa is the largest national Mensa operating under the auspices of Mensa International, Ltd. There are currently more than 100,000 members worldwide, and an estimated six million Americans are eligible for Mensa membership.

Members of American Mensa range in age from 2 to 102. They include engineers, homemakers, teachers, actors, athletes, students and CEOs, and they share only one trait — high intelligence. To qualify for Mensa, they scored in the top 2 percent of the general population on an accepted standardized intelligence test.

Below is additional information about American Mensa according to its website as of September 9, 2014:

Demographically speaking…

American Mensa members are, as a group, diverse in their ages, interests and stages of life, but they do have a few things in common.

•     First, Mensa members are, overall, highly educated with strong incomes and influential occupations.
•     They are lifelong learners. New topics, new experiences and new resources are important to them as these are the things that challenge and inspire them.
•     They’re bright as well. They’ve scored in the top 2 percent on a standardized intelligence test, which means they are likely to evaluate and make decisions quickly.
•     They are curious and many are highly social. When they encounter new things, they ask lots of questions and share their discoveries with friends and colleagues.

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Mensa members by age

The youngest Mensan is 2 years old; the oldest is 102 years old.
Approximately 38 percent are Baby Boomers between the ages of 51 and 68.
Thirty-one percent are Gen-Xers between the ages of 27 and 48.
More than 2,600 members are under the age of 18.

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Mensa members by gender

The general membership is 66 percent male, 33 percent female.
The leadership — both national and local officers — is 50 percent male, 50 percent female.

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Mensa members by occupation

The diversity of Mensa’s membership is best described by the various ways they earn their livings. These are just a few of Mensa’s occupations.

 

Barber CEO Clergy Engineer Homemaker Database administrator

Lawyer Musician Nurse Police officer Postal worker Veterinarian

Realtor Rocket scientist Taxi driver Teacher Interpreter Logger

 

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Mensa families

There are more than 1,800 families with two or more Mensa members.

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American Mensan facts

53,414 members responded to the questionnaire from which these questions were culled.

 

32,402 have college degrees. 5,330 indicate an interest in travel. 2,694 indicate an interest in cooking. 2,485 indicate an interest in humor. 2,132 indicate an interest in golf.

1,943 indicate an interest in crossword puzzles. 1,749 indicate an interest in football. 1,187 indicate an interest in SCUBA diving. 397 indicate an interest in fashion.

All six generations of members rank computers or computer gaming as one of their top three interests, and the oldest four generations (Depression, Silent, Baby Boom and GenX) also list travel as a top-three interest. One generation — the Millennials — ranks both computers and computer gaming in their top three interests.

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Ten largest Local Groups

(based on March 2011 membership figures)

1. Greater New York Mensa (2,446)
2. Chicago Area Mensa (2,238)
3. Metropolitan Washington Mensa (2,201)
4. San Francisco Regional Mensa (2,092)
5. Greater Los Angeles Area Mensa (1,781)
6. Minnesota Mensa (1,347)
7. Mensa In Georgia (1,282)
8. Gulf Coast Mensa (1,269)
9. Mensa of Western Washington (1,264)
10. Boston Mensa (1,261)

DAVIS LAW is a Pennsylvania-based law firm with its primary office located in Jamison, central Bucks County, minutes from the county seat in Doylestown.  Davis Law engages in the practice of law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  DAVIS LAW, located near Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, is pleased to offer clients competitive alternative fee agreements, including fixed fees, contingency fees, and hourly rates.  Please contact our offices via email or telephone for a free initial consultation.  Davis Law’s legal services include various practice areas in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

 

Disclaimer

The post MENSA Selects Davis Law CEO Marshal Davis as a Member appeared first on Davis Law.

Davis Law’s CEO Marshal H. Davis, Esq., MBA, LLM to Speak at Lorman Education Services Continuing Education Seminar: “IRS Form 1099 Reporting: What You Need to Know”

Seminar details: http://www.lorman.com/seminars/391352

From the seminar web page:

The 1099 forms are confusing – can you afford to only grasp the basics?

Independent contractors save your business money, but increasing IRS scrutiny can put you at risk. Fail to meet all the 1099 filing requirements, and you may land in a hotbed of penalties. With a maze of 1099 forms, and confusing and ever-changing IRS reporting guidelines, mastering the 1099 can be a daunting task for any business.

Attend this informative seminar and sharpen your 1099 savvy. Develop better, more accurate reporting skills – keep your business audit-ready and in compliance. Determine a worker’s status without hesitation – every time – and stay current and in the clear.

Benefits for You

• Walk through the 1099 series of forms with ease – know which form you need to use
• Pinpoint when to issue a W-2 or 1099 form
• Perfect your backup withholding rules know-how
• Increase your filing savvy and avoid late filing and failure to file penalties

Learning Objectives

• You will be able to review common types of 1099s.
• You will be able to discuss Form 1099-MISC.
• You will be able to explain Section 530 Revenue Act.
• You will be able to describe how to stay in compliance.

DAVIS LAW is a Pennsylvania-based law firm with its primary office located in Jamison, central Bucks County, minutes from the county seat in Doylestown.  Davis Law engages in the practice of law in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  DAVIS LAW can be contacted at (267) 482-9595.

The post IRS Form 1099 Reporting: What You Need to Know – Important Information for Businesses & Nonprofits appeared first on Davis Law.

Protecting Your Business Interests from the Pitfalls of Implied Warranties

If your business sells goods, you should be aware that there are warranties that are implied in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and many other states, even if you had no intention of selling a product with a warranty attached.  This article’s focus is on the sale of goods to other businesses.  There are additional responsibilities if your customers are individual consumers.  Implied warranties can create a future liability with respect to the product you sell.  Some of these implied warranties (and a very basic description) include:

• Warranty of Merchantability & Usage of Trade:  Seller has an obligation of good faith and must sell goods that are merchantable.   Merchantable goods must conform to certain standards of quality, conformity, fitness, quality, packaging, labeling, etc.
• Warranty of Fitness for a Particular Purpose:  Seller is subject to an implied warranty that goods are fit for a particular purpose if the seller has any reason to know the buyer’s purpose or intended use of the goods and when the buyer relies on the seller’s skill or judgment to select or furnish suitable goods.
• Warranty Against Infringement:  Seller must deliver goods free of any rightful claim by any third party by way of infringement.
• Warranty of Condition on Arrival:  Seller is subject to additional warranties regarding the quality, condition, price, and delivery of goods under certain contracts or delivery terms.
• Warranty of Title:  Seller must (1) have the right to transfer title; (2) convey good title; and (3) deliver goods from undisclosed security interests, liens, and encumbrances.
• Additionally, a Seller of goods is subject to Federal Minimum Standards for Warranties.

With conscientious contract drafting and adding warranty disclaimers to your product literature, you can disclaim much of the liability from some of these implied warranties.  Such disclaimers can reduce the risk and uncertainty of future claims, improve future cash flows, reduce reserves/allowances, and augment the bottom line.

Of course if your business is purchasing products – whether for its own consumption or for resale – you should be aware of these issues and your rights.  You may negotiate the terms of the contract to include express warranties that protect your interests, while simultaneously eliminating or reducing warranty disclaimers.

Attorney Marshal Davis originally wrote this article in 2009, which was published in the Fall/Winter 2009 edition of the Bucks Prospectus, published by the Bucks County Economic Development Corporation (BCEDC) several times per year.  The BCEDC was chartered in 1958 and is a private, nonprofit organization governed by a volunteer board of directors representing a wide range of local industries and businesses.

Davis Law can advise your company and help it to draft warranty policies and disclaimers.  Please call (267) 482-9595 to schedule a free initial consultation.

https://mhdesq.com/disclaimer

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Annual Meeting, Annual Minutes, and Annual Records for Pennsylvania Corporations – Alert

Over the past few months, Davis Law‘s Bucks County office has received calls from clients who own businesses in Pennsylvania regarding what appeared to be an alert they received in the mail.  Davis Law advised them that corporations are generally required in Pennsylvania and New Jersey to have annual meetings where shareholders elect boards of directors, directors elect officers, and those elections and other significant transactions or decisions are recorded in annual meeting minutes.  Other meetings may also be required, depending on the specifics of a given corporation’s bylaws.  Davis Law can advise clients on the meetings, elections, and necessary documentation of the minutes of the meetings or unanimous consents.  Please call Davis Law at (267) 482-9595 to speak with a lawyer who can advise you on your individual situation, as these meetings, elections, and documents can vary from company to company.  These documents are internal for the corporation and are generally NOT required to be filed with any government body or entity outside the corporation itself.

However, supposed alerts were sent to business owners, corporate shareholders, and corporations themselves, where it appeared that the corporation was required to file such documents and pay a fee.  However, that is not correct.  The Pennsylvania Department of State Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations published an alert on this.

The content below is that alert, as copied from: http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/corporations/12457/scams/1456389

Important Consumer Alert

Corporate Compliance Company

and Corporate Records Service Scam

April 18, 2013

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The Pennsylvania Department of State has been made aware of solicitations that are being mailed to Pennsylvania businesses from two companies:  Pennsylvania Corporate Compliance Company and Corporate Records Service. These solicitations are titled “Annual Meeting Disclosure Statement,”  “2013 – Annual Minutes Form ,” and “2013 Annual Corporate Records Form .” These mailings urge business corporations and limited liability companies to file information and send payment in the amount of $125.00 by a certain date in order to maintain proper records.

These solicitations include a citation to the Pennsylvania Business Corporation Law regarding corporate records. At first glance, these solicitations may look official; however, none of the information being requested is required to be filed with the Department of State or the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Pennsylvania corporations and limited liability companies are not required to file corporate minutes with the Department of State or with a private company such as Pennsylvania Corporate Compliance Company or Corporate Records Service . The Department is alerting all Pennsylvania business entities of this deceptive solicitation to prevent Pennsylvania businesses from completing the form and sending payment to a mailing center post office box address by the deadline on the form.

Despite the suggestive language on the mailing, the “Annual Meeting Disclosure Statement,”  the “2013 – Annual Minutes Form” and the “2013 Annual Corporate Records Form” are not required to be completed. These formal-looking letters did not originate from any governmental office, nor are the Pennsylvania Corporate Compliance Company and Corporate Records Serviceaffiliated or associated with Pennsylvania state government in any way. Similar scams have been reported in other states. These “Annual Meeting Disclosure Statement,” “2013 – Annual Minutes Form”  and “2013 Annual Corporate Records Form”documents should be disregarded by all companies that receive them.

Additionally, please keep in mind that any official notices sent to businesses by the Pennsylvania Department of State or the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office will contain the letterhead and/or contact information for the Bureau of Corporations and Charitable Organizations. Please contact the Bureau at (717) 787-1057 or ra-corps@pa.gov should you have any questions or concerns regarding these solicitations.
Modified Date: 08/13/2013 01:35 PM

See Disclaimer

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