What Records Should a Texas Business Keep?
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Posted On :
Jun-18-2009
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Article Word Count :
747
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Record keeping is a daunting and (most of the time) boring task. However, if you want an organized business and would like to see how your business fares on a very competitive market
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Record keeping is a daunting and (most of the time) boring task. However, if you want an organized business and would like to see how your business fares on a very competitive market, you have to be a pack rat in some ways. In Texas, an organized business is not only easy to manage but sells quickly, too. When the time comes you have decided to move forward with your other business ventures, records can help you with your sales pitch and successfully sell your old business.
What should you keep?
1. Receipts and invoices - All businesses--whether it is a sole proprietorship, a partnership or a corporation--will benefit greatly from a well-kept records of purchases, expenses, sales and even cancelled checks. Collecting these receipts and keeping a record of them in a ledger will help in (1) preparing tax returns, (2)foreseeing how the business will progress, say in three years or five years time, and (2) eventually in deciding where to cut costs and which of the available business strategies should it take.
2. Records Pertaining to Annual Meetings of Shareholders - Under the law, a corporation should hold a regular annual meeting of shareholders for the purposes of electing Board of Directors and for shareholders to hear the report about the business situation of the corporation. Is the business winning? Or losing? This meeting helps a shareholder determine whether the business is flourishing or is on the verge of bankruptcy. Also, this is the only time a shareholder can interact and in some ways influence the decisions of the management.
A Texas business should have forms for the notices, waivers, declarations of service, and shareholder's proxy. It should also keep minutes of annual and special meetings of shareholders. The following is a list of some of the forms and documents that a Texas business should keep:
1. Notices of Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
2. Declarations of Service of Notice of Annual Meetings of Shareholders.
3. Call of Special Meeting of Shareholders (by shareholders).
4. Notice of Special Meeting of Shareholders.
5. Minutes of Annual Meeting of Shareholders.
6. Minutes of Special Meeting of Shareholders.
7. Unanimous Written Consents of Shareholders.
8. Waiver, Consent and Approval of Shareholder Meeting.
9. Shareholder Proxy (general).
10. Shareholder Proxy for a Particular Purpose.
11. Shareholder Proxy with Limitation of Authority.
3. Records Pertaining to Meetings of the Board of Directors - The meeting of Board of Directors is, in business sense, much more important than the shareholders' meeting. The members of the Board are the persons who actually run the business. Unlike shareholders, the Board of Directors determines and executes corporate policies. Therefore, it is a necessity to keep all records pertaining to meetings of the Board of Directors. These records are the basis of changes in corporate policies, products or service cancellations or launching of new products or service.
The following is a list of some of the forms and documents that a Texas business should keep:
1. Notices of Regular Meeting of Board of Directors.
2. Declarations of Service of Notice of Meeting of Board of Directors.
3. Call of Special Meeting of Board of Directors.
4. Notice of Special Meeting of Board of Directors.
5. Minutes of Regular Meeting of Board of Directors.
6. Minutes of Special Meeting of Board of Directors.
7. Approval of minutes of Board of Directors by absent directors;
8. Resolutions of the Board of Directors.
9. Secretary's certificate of adoption of any resolutions by the Board of Directors;
10. Unanimous Written Consent of Board of Directors.
11. Waiver, Consent and Approval of Meeting of Board of Directors.
12. Proxy (general).
13. Proxy for a Particular Purpose.
14. Proxy with Limitation of Authority.
4. Other Important Records - The corporate seal, stock transfer book, financial statements and reports, annual reports and other important company documents such as tax reports, contracts, insurance policies, leases, promissory notes, loan documents, and the like, should be kept in a safe and dry place (or in a vault), to preserve its condition. These are documents that are hard to replace when lost or damaged. For instance, if a business would want to enforce a contract, it would be hard for that business to assert its right without the original contract in hand.
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Article Source :
http://www.articleseen.com/Article_What Records Should a Texas Business Keep?_1191.aspx
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Author Resource :
About the Author:
Joe Cline writes articles for austin law firm. Other articles written by the author related to the cronfel firm can be found on the net.
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Keywords :
the cronfel firm, austin law firm,
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