2018 Mississippi Code
Title 79 - Corporations, Associations, and Partnerships
Chapter 35 - The Mississippi Registered Agents Act
§ 79-35-14. Duties of registered agent.
(a) The only duties under this chapter of a registered agent that has complied with this chapter are:
(1) To forward to the represented entity at the address most recently supplied to the agent by the entity any process, notice, or demand that is served on the agent;
(2) To provide the notices required by this chapter to the entity at the address most recently supplied to the agent by the entity;
(3) If the agent is a noncommercial registered agent, to keep current the information required by Section 79-35-5(a) in the most recent registered agent filing for the entity; and
(4) If the agent is a commercial registered agent, to keep current the information listed for it under Section 79-35-6(a).
(b) A person named as the registered agent for a represented entity in a registered agent filing pursuant to this chapter without the person’s consent is not considered to be a “registered agent” of the entity for purposes of this chapter and therefore the person shall not have, and shall not be required to perform, the duties prescribed by this section with respect to the represented entity described in this subsection (b).
(1) In the event a person described in this subsection (b) is served with notice of service of process pursuant to Section 79-35-13(a), service on the person shall be deemed to be service on the entity that named the agent, even if the person does not forward the service to the entity.
(2) The person described in this subsection (b) shall have no responsibility to forward the service described in this subsection (b) to the entity, even if the person accepts the service by mistake; and the person further may not be held liable regardless of whether the person files a notice of nonacceptance with the Secretary of State:
(A) Under a judgment, decree, or order of a court, agency, or tribunal of any type, or in any other manner, in this or any other state, or on any other basis, for a debt, obligation, or liability of the represented entity, whether arising in contract, tort, or otherwise, solely because of the person’s designation or appointment as registered agent; or
(B) To the represented entity or to a person who reasonably relied on the unauthorized designation or appointment solely because of the person’s failure or refusal to perform the duties of a registered agent under this section.
(3) A person described in subsection (b) of this section may file a notice of nonacceptance with the Secretary of State’s office for the purpose of removing the person’s name from the records of the Secretary of State that relate to the entity described in subsection (b) of this section.
Upon the filing of the notice of nonacceptance, the Secretary of State shall notify the entity in writing of the nonacceptance. After receipt of the notice from the Secretary of State, the entity shall obtain and designate a registered agent.