(1) A foreign entity shall not transact business or conduct activities in this state except in compliance with this part 8 and not until its statement of foreign entity authority is filed in the records of the secretary of state. Notwithstanding the foregoing, this part 8 shall not apply to foreign general partnerships that are not foreign limited liability partnerships and shall not apply to foreign unincorporated nonprofit associations. To the extent that a provision of this part 8 is inconsistent with another statute of this state in its application to a foreign entity, such other statute, and not such provision of this part 8, shall apply.
(2) A foreign entity shall not be considered to be transacting business or conducting activities in this state within the meaning of subsection (1) of this section by reason of carrying on in this state any one or more of the following activities:
(a) Maintaining, defending, or settling in its own behalf any proceeding or dispute;
(b) Holding meetings of its owners or managers or carrying on other activities concerning its internal affairs;
(c) Maintaining bank accounts;
(d) Maintaining offices or agencies for the transfer, exchange, and registration of its own securities or owner's interests, or maintaining trustees or depositories with respect to those securities or owner's interests;
(e) Selling through independent contractors;
(f) Soliciting or obtaining orders, whether by mail or electronic transmission, through employees or agents, or otherwise, if the orders require acceptance outside this state before they become contracts;
(g) Creating, as borrower or lender, or acquiring, indebtedness;
(h) Creating, as borrower or lender, or acquiring, mortgages or other security interests in real or personal property;
(i) Securing or collecting debts in its own behalf or enforcing mortgages or security interests in property securing such debts;
(j) Owning, without more, real or personal property;
(k) Conducting an isolated transaction that is completed within thirty days and that is not one in the course of repeated transactions of a like nature;
(l) Transacting business or conducting activities in interstate commerce; and
(m) In the case of a foreign nonprofit corporation:
(I) Granting funds; or
(II) Distributing information to its members.
(3) The list of activities in subsection (2) of this section is not exhaustive.
(4) Nothing in this section shall limit or affect the right to subject a foreign entity that does not, or is not required to, have authority to transact business or conduct activities in this state to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state or to serve upon any foreign entity any process, notice, or demand required or permitted by law to be served upon an entity pursuant to part 7 of this article or sections 13-1-124 and 13-1-125, C.R.S., or any other provision of law or pursuant to the applicable rules of civil procedure.
(5) A foreign nonprofit entity shall be considered to be transacting business or conducting activities in this state if it is required to file a registration statement with the secretary of state pursuant to section 6-16-104, C.R.S.
Source: L. 2003: Entire part added, p. 2305, � 217, effective July 1, 2004. L. 2004: (1) amended, p. 1492, � 236, effective July 1. L. 2007: (5) added, p. 244, � 39, effective May 29. L. 2021: (2)(f) amended, (HB 21-1124), ch. 41, p. 157, � 1, effective April 19.
7-90-802. Consequences of transacting business or conducting activities without authority. (1) (a) No foreign entity transacting business or conducting activities in this state without authority, nor anyone on its behalf, shall be permitted to maintain a proceeding in any court in this state for the collection of its debts until a statement of foreign entity authority for the foreign entity is filed in the records of the secretary of state.
(b) A court may stay a proceeding commenced by a foreign entity until it determines whether the foreign entity should have a statement of foreign entity authority on file with the secretary of state. If the court determines that the foreign entity should have a statement of foreign entity authority on file with the secretary of state, the court may further stay the proceeding until there is a statement of foreign entity authority on file with the secretary of state with respect to the foreign entity. If a foreign entity has a statement of foreign entity authority on file with the secretary of state, no proceeding in any court in this state to which the foreign entity is a party shall, after the effective date of such statement of foreign entity authority, be dismissed by reason of a statement of foreign entity authority not being on file with the secretary of state with respect to the foreign entity.
(2) A foreign entity that transacts business or conducts activities in this state without being authorized to do so shall be liable to this state in an amount equal to the fee as prescribed by the secretary of state from time to time, not to exceed one hundred dollars for each calendar year or part of a calendar year during which it transacted business or conducted activities in this state without being authorized to do so, plus all penalties imposed by this state pursuant to subsection (3) of this section for failure to pay such fees. No statement of foreign entity authority shall be filed until payment of the amounts due under this subsection (2) and subsection (3) of this section is made.
(3) A foreign entity that transacts business or conducts activities in this state without having a statement of foreign entity authority on file in the records of the secretary of state shall be subject to a civil penalty, payable to this state, not to exceed five thousand dollars.
(4) The amounts due to this state under the provisions of subsection (2) of this section and the civil penalties set forth in subsection (3) of this section may be recovered in an action brought by the attorney general in the district court in and for the city and county of Denver. Upon a finding by the court that a foreign entity or any of its managers or agents on its behalf has transacted business or conducted activities in this state in violation of this part 8, the court may issue, in addition to or in lieu of the imposition of a civil penalty, an injunction restraining the further transaction of business or conducting of activities by the foreign entity and the managers and agents, and the further exercise of any rights and privileges of an entity in this state until all amounts plus any interest and court costs that the court may assess have been paid, and until the foreign entity has otherwise complied with this part 8.
(5) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, the transaction of business or conducting of activities in this state by a foreign entity without having a statement of foreign entity authority on file in the records of the secretary of state does not impair the validity of the acts of the foreign entity or prevent it from defending any proceeding in this state.
Source: L. 2003: Entire part added, p. 2306, � 217, effective July 1, 2004. L. 2004: (1), (2), and (4) amended, p. 1492, � 237, effective July 1. L. 2005: (1) amended, p. 1211, � 18, effective October 1.
7-90-803. Statement of foreign entity authority to transact business or conduct activities. (1) A foreign entity may cause to be delivered to the secretary of state, for filing pursuant to part 3 of this article, a statement of foreign entity authority stating:
(a) Its true name and its assumed entity name, if any;
(b) The jurisdiction under the law of which it is formed;
(c) The form of the entity as that form is recognized by the jurisdiction under the law of which the entity is formed;
(d) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2004, p. 1493, � 238, effective July 1, 2004.)
(e) The principal office address of its principal office;
(f) The registered agent name and registered agent address of its registered agent; and
(g) The date it commenced or expects to commence transacting business or conducting activities in this state.
(h) (Deleted by amendment, L. 2004, p. 1493, � 238, effective July 1, 2004.)
Source: L. 2003: Entire part added, p. 2307, � 217, effective July 1, 2004. L. 2004: (1)(c), (1)(d), and (1)(h) amended, p. 1493, � 238, effective July 1. L. 2006: (1)(b) amended, p. 876, � 61, effective July 1.
7-90-804. Change of statement of foreign entity authority to transact business or conduct activities. Upon any change in circumstances that makes any statement contained in its filed statement of foreign entity authority no longer true, a foreign entity authorized to transact business or conduct activities in this state shall deliver to the secretary of state, for filing pursuant to part 3 of this article, an appropriate statement of change so that its statement of foreign entity authority is in all respects true.
Source: L. 2003: Entire part added, p. 2307, � 217, effective July 1, 2004.