🚨 Consumer Alert: Risk Level Critical

The Ghost Identity
(Are they real?)

Executive Summary

  • THE RISK:Contracts signed by "Dissolved" entities are often legally unenforceable. You can't sue a ghost.
  • THE CAUSE:Failure to file annual reports or pay franchise taxes (Administrative Dissolution).
  • THE FIX:A 30-second search on the Secretary of State (SOS) website.

The "High Stakes" Scenario

You hire "Apex Remodeling LLC." They botch the job, causing $50,000 in damage. You sue them. Your lawyer calls with bad news: "Apex Remodeling LLC hasn't existed since 2019."

The state dissolved them 5 years ago for failure to pay taxes. The contract you signed is with a fiction.

Section 1: The Anatomy of the Risk

To operate a Limited Liability Company (LLC), you must remain in "Good Standing". This requires filing annual reports and paying taxes. When a contractor ignores this, the state marks them "Administratively Dissolved."

☠️ The Forensic Truth: If they can't handle a simple annual form for the state, how will they handle your complex engineering drawings and permits? Administrative Dissolution is the first symptom of a dying company.

The "Litmus Test"

  1. Ask: "What is the exact legal name of your LLC?"
  2. Google: "[Your State] SOS Business Search".
  3. Type it in. If it says Dissolved or Forfeited, STOP.

We Check The SOS For You.

Our algorithm auto-rejects any business not in "Good Standing."