A 2004 change in state law is prompting Missouri Secretary of State Robin Carnahan to remind business owners to renew their DBAs ASAP.
Aug. 28, 2009, is the renewal deadline set by the 2004 law for all Missouri fictitious registrations - also known as DBAs, standing for "doing business as" - filed before Aug. 28, 2004. Fictitious registrations filed after that date will expire five years from their registration date.
The deadline - part of former Missouri Speaker of the House Catherine Hanaway's 2004 bill - could have significant consequences for Missouri business.
There are more than 560,000 fictitious registrations on file with the state, and more than 430,000 of those must be renewed this year. If the individuals who filed the fictitious registrations don't renew by the deadline, they won't be able to conduct business legally in the Show-Me State under those names.
Why renew?
Secretary of state spokesman Ryan Hobart said the state is sending out notices to all registration holders.
The cost to renew is $7, but the penalties for operating a business under an unregistered name are more significant, he said.
"It's a misdemeanor if you continue to operate when you're not registered to use that name," Hobart said. "To get filed is not a big hassle, ... so it usually gets resolved before it goes to any legal action."
BridgeBlue Sourcing Partners LLC, a Springfield-based home furnishings retailer and importer, has received the state's renewal letter for its January 2004 fictitious registration "Bridge Blue."
Controller Thesha Farris-Hancock said the company plans to renew the name for two reasons: to protect Bridge Blue from others who might file similar names, and to make sure that any payment checks made out to the fictitious name can be deposited in the company's bank account.
Companies can renew their names online at www.sos.mo.gov.
Still, Sativa Boatman-Sloan, associate attorney with Springfield firm Baird, Lightner, Millsap & Harpool PC, said the impending deadline could catch many small businesses by surprise and create some unpleasant legal issues.
"If that name is really important to their business - their marketing, how it's run, getting customers in the door - and they don't re-register that name before it runs out, someone could go out and register it," she said. "They could lose that name."
Professional protection
The potential to lose access to a company's recognized name - potentially to a competitor - is one reason Boatman-Sloan said most attorneys rarely recommend a fictitious registration for a new business.
"If I'm really savvy and I'm your competitor, and I know that you don't know about the law, I may wait and see if you register," she said. "And if you don't, I may go register it myself."
The bigger drawback of fictitious names, however, is liability - if an individual does business without the protection of a formal business entity such as a corporation or limited liability company, that person could be liable for any damages or expenses.
"If you're doing business in your own name and you open a hot dog stand with the DBA Bob's Hot Dogs, but you serve someone a bad hot dog or someone gets hit by your cart, it goes back on you," she said. "They can sue you and get straight at you and everything that's owned in your name."
Corporations and LLCs also can be filed through the secretary of state's office, though there are significantly more requirements. Organizers must list a registered agent, pay a fee to incorporate - which varies depending on the size of the company - and renew annually.
Boatman-Sloan added that corporations and LLCs offer a level of legal separation between the business' assets and those of the individual owners, as well as protection against anyone else doing business under that name.
While the state is reminding businesses of their obligation to renew fictitious name filings, cities and counties also require business registration. The city of Springfield, for example, recognizes 140 different business types, each with its own licensing requirements, according to city licensing officials.[[In-content Ad]]
While a disruption in international trade has the capacity to hurt local farmers and ranchers, beef producers are having a good go of things at the moment.
