Service of process: what it means for your LLC

A registered agent is a person or company named with the state who can be handed a lawsuit for the business. It is not a mailbox. An agent for service of process is the same role. That is the name some states and courts use. The Secretary of State is the state office that keeps business filings. What the person does on a quiet day is in What is a registered agent for an LLC?

What to do the day a lawsuit is aimed at your LLC

Do these three things before you shop for a company to sit at the street. The papers matter more than a website.

1. Read every page Find the court name, the case number, and any date to respond. A summons is the paper that says a lawsuit was filed. A complaint is the paper that says what the other side claims.
2. Do not guess the deadline The number of days varies. In a federal case, Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 4 says the summons must state the time to appear and defend. A state court uses that state’s rules. Read the date on your papers.
3. Call a lawyer the same day Tell the lawyer which court is named, where the papers were handed over, and which state the LLC is filed in. This page cannot pick that date for you.

What is service of process

It is the formal delivery. The company is officially told. A sales catalog is not that delivery. A friendly email from a customer is not that delivery either.

In a federal case, Rule 4 says a summons must be served with a copy of the complaint. Rule 4(h) covers a corporation. It also covers a partnership. It also covers another unincorporated association that can be sued under a common name. The papers may be handed to an officer. They may be handed to a managing or general agent. They may be handed to any other agent authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of process. The same rule also allows service by following state law for serving an individual. The December 1, 2025 rules pamphlet is the text this page uses.

If you sign a waiver of service in federal court, the form attached to Rule 4 gives a longer clock. It says 60 days from the date the request was sent, or 90 days if it was sent outside the United States. That clock is only for the waiver. If someone handed over papers, use the date printed on the summons. State court is a different set of rules.

What is an agent for service of process

The agent for service of process is the person or company named to receive that delivery. Some states print those words on the form. Other states say registered agent and mean the same job.

In Texas, the Secretary of State FAQ says registered agent. It does not use the California phrase on that page. Business Organizations Code § 5.201 says the registered agent is an agent on whom process, notice, or demand may be served. The registered office is a street where that service can happen in person. It may not be solely a mailbox service or a telephone answering service.

In Delaware, 6 Del. C. § 18-104 says each limited liability company shall have a registered agent for service of process. The Division of Corporations FAQ says that agent accepts service of process at a physical office in Delaware. The agent also passes along billing and tax information.

In Nevada, NRS 86.231 says an LLC shall have a registered agent who must have a street address for the service of process. NRS 86.261 says that agent is a person on whom process, notice, or demand may be served. The same section says other methods the law allows still exist. It does not, by itself, name the Secretary of State as the backup.

In New York, the shape is different. Limited Liability Company Law § 301 says the secretary of state is the agent of the LLC. No LLC is formed under that chapter unless the articles designate the secretary of state as that agent. A private name on the form is extra. The New York scorecard is the longer page.

Agent for service of process in California

California uses the words agent for service of process. The Secretary of State FAQ says that agent is an individual who resides in California, or a registered corporate agent under Corporations Code section 1505. The agent is designated to accept court papers if the business is sued. A corporation named as that agent must be active and have a current 1505 filing.

The same FAQ says a business entity cannot act as its own agent for service of process. An officer or a director often takes the job for a small company. If you list yourself, your name and physical street are a public record, open to all.

The Service of Process page says corporations and limited liability companies are required by statute to designate that agent. The live name is on bizfile Online. The California scorecard is the filing detail and the company grades. The methodology page is how those grades are built. This page is the delivery of the papers.

The day the papers arrive

A process server is a person whose job is to hand over court papers. On that day, the server looks for the agent at the street on the state list.

In Texas, § 5.206 says the agent receives or accepts process, notice, or demand. The agent forwards it to the address the company last gave. Or the agent otherwise notifies the company at that address. The section does not print a number of hours. In Delaware, § 18-104 says the agent accepts service of process and forwards it. The Division FAQ says the agent is generally present during normal business hours. It does not print a clock such as 9 to 5.

The forward step is the agent’s job. Answering the lawsuit is yours. The agent does not become the defendant. A defendant is the person or company being sued.

If the papers reach you, read them that day. If the forward is slow, do not wait out the week. Call a lawyer with whatever you have. The statute did not print a same-day promise.

If no one is at the listed address

The next step is not the same in every state. Where the statute says so, the Secretary of State may be served instead. Where it does not say so, do not assume that path. These are examples. They are not a full list.

• California, after a court order The Secretary of State’s service page allows substituted service through that office in three cases. Direct service has to have failed. A court has to find the tries were reasonably diligent. The court has to order it. The papers, the order, and a $50 fee are handed over in Sacramento. The hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays that are not state holidays. Mail is not allowed. The Los Angeles office does not take that delivery.
• Texas, if the agent cannot be found § 5.251 says the secretary of state is an agent for service in two cases. The company does not keep a registered agent. Or the agent cannot with reasonable diligence be found at the registered office. You still may not name the secretary of state as your registered agent. The FAQ says a governmental office cannot serve as the registered agent you appoint. § 5.252 says service on the secretary of state uses duplicate copies. Any fee the law requires goes with those copies. This page does not print that dollar.
• Delaware, after due diligence § 18-105(a) says how the first try works. Serve a manager in Delaware. Or serve the registered agent in Delaware. Or leave the papers at the home of a manager, or of an individual agent, in the way the section describes. Or leave them at the registered office, in the way the section describes. Subsection (b) is the backup. If the officer cannot by due diligence serve the papers that way, service on the Secretary of State is allowed. The statute sets a fee for that step. This page does not print the dollar.
• Florida, agent first Florida Statutes § 48.062 says start by serving the registered agent. If the company has no agent, the papers may go to someone else. The same is true if one good-faith try fails. That person may be a manager. It may be a member. It may be a person listed on the latest annual report. Service on the Secretary of State comes after due diligence. It is allowed only in the cases that section lists. The Florida scorecard is the longer page. This guide does not shorten those cases into a new rule.
• Washington, mail before the state office RCW 23.95.450 says serve the registered agent. If there is no agent, mail is the next step. Mail is also the next step if the agent cannot with reasonable diligence be served. The mail is registered or certified. It goes to the principal office on the latest annual report. Service is finished on the earliest of three dates. Those dates are the day the company receives the mail, the date on the return receipt, or five days after a correct mailing. That five-day line is about when service is finished. It is not your deadline to answer. If the mail path also fails, there is one more try. The papers may be handed to the person in charge of a regular place of business. That person cannot be the one suing. The secretary of state is an agent only if those earlier paths fail. The Washington scorecard is the longer page.
• New York is not a backup The secretary of state is already the agent. § 303 says service is complete when the Department of State is served, in the way that section describes. On the paper path, the department sends a copy by certified mail. The copy goes to the post office address on file. On the electronic path, the department sends notice by email. A stale mailing address does not undo service that is already complete.
• Wyoming’s FAQ does not name that backup The Wyoming Secretary of State FAQ says the registered office is a physical street where a person can accept service of process. A post office box, a virtual address, a mail-forwarding location, a UPS store, or a FedEx store does not qualify. That FAQ does not say the Secretary of State is who gets served when nobody is at the street. The Wyoming scorecard is the longer rule. Do not borrow California’s court-order path and paste it onto Wyoming.

Can I be my own agent for service of process

Often yes, if you are the person the state allows, at a real street in that state, during the hours that state describes. The LLC’s own name is a different question. It depends on the state.

California’s FAQ says an individual who lives in California can be the agent for service of process. The business entity cannot be its own agent. Your name and street go on the public record.

Texas’s FAQ says an individual Texas resident may serve, and so may an officer, owner, or employee. The company itself may not serve as its own registered agent. The secretary of state cannot be the registered agent you appoint.

Delaware’s statute says the agent may be the LLC itself, an individual who lives in Delaware, or another company the section allows. The Division FAQ says the business may act as its own agent if it is physically located in Delaware. The agent must have a physical street and be generally present during normal business hours. A house in another state does not fill that line.

Wyoming’s FAQ answers the question in one place. Yes, if you are at least 18, you live in Wyoming, you have a physical Wyoming address, and you have a valid email. The street rules above still apply.

The longer page on putting your own name on the form is Can I be my own registered agent? The DIY, lawyer, or commercial page sets the three ways to fill the name. A lawyer is a person with an office, if that is the deal. A hired company lists its own street. The company still has to get the papers to you.

Questions people ask

Does the agent fight the lawsuit?

No. The agent takes the papers and is supposed to get them to the company. You, or your lawyer, answer the case. Texas § 5.206 limits the agent’s duties to receiving, forwarding, and giving the notices the law requires.

Is every letter in the mail service of process?

No. A catalog is not a lawsuit. Some statutes do allow a mailing when the earlier try fails. Washington’s mail path is one example, and it is not the first step. If the envelope is from a court, treat it as real and call a lawyer.

What if the street on the state list is old?

The server uses the street on the public list. If nobody can be found there, the backup in that state’s statute may already be open. Update the agent line with the filing office. This page does not print a fee for that filing.

How many days do I have to answer?

It varies. Read the summons. In federal court the summons must state the time to appear and defend. A waiver of service uses the 60-day or 90-day line on the Rule 4 form, and only if you sign it. State courts write their own numbers. Call a lawyer right away.

If you hire a company to take the papers, these buttons open that company’s own page. Hiring the company does not answer the lawsuit. The state’s filing is still separate.