the wasserblawg

by: Michael Wasserman Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White is warning businesses to beware of a scam targeting Illinois corporations. A firm called Corporate Records Service is contacting Illinois businesses in an attempt to collect a $125 fee to fill out a corporation’s “Annual Minutes Records Form.”  The Illinois Business Corporation Act does not require corporations to file a “Minutes Records Form” or pay such a fee with the state or any private entity. “The problem is that the form this bogus firm is sending out looks similar to our Secretary of State’s annual report form,” White said.  “We are concerned that companies are filing the form and paying the $125 because they believe they are filing their annual report with us, as required by law.” Although the bogus notice states that the fee must be paid by September 21, 2012, there is no fee due to the state for that purpose.  The only fee that corporations must pay is the fee that is paid with their annual report.