Richard Burt Professional Law Corporation
Mon - Fri: 9 AM - 6 PM
In communicating through a website with a lawyer you are thinking of hiring, you should not provide any confidential information concerning your legal matter until an attorney-client relationship has been formed.
Sending an email to Richard Burt or leaving a voice mail for him or his assistant (and a reply from either) does not create an attorney-client relationship.
No attorney-client relationship will be formed until you and Mr. Burt have agreed that he should represent you, he has determined that there is no conflict with an existing client, you have signed an engagement letter that sets forth the terms of the representation, and, when requested, you have made a fee deposit.
Please note that the initial consultation is solely to determine the nature of your legal matter and to discuss fees. Mr. Burt does not offer free legal advice.
After an attorney-client relationship has been formed, email (and voice mail) may of course be freely used for confidential attorney-client communications.
If we try to call you at a telephone number that you provide to us and are unable to reach you (and your voice mail is full or is not set up), we may text you at that number to let you know that we tried to call you. By sending an email via this website or by calling and leaving a voice-mail message, you consent to receiving such texts. At any time, you may reply STOP to opt-out from further messages.
NOTE: Mr. Burt does not handle litigation of any kind. If you wish to sue someone, are being sued, or need to make a court filing of any kind, Mr. Burt cannot help you. You should not contact him for those services.
Misleading Certificate of Status Solicitations
The California Secretary of State has issued warnings about misleading certificate of status solicitations. Directors and officers of corporations and managers and members of limited liability companies (LLCs) should be wary of such solicitations. As a public service, the text of the Secretary of State’s warning is repeated below (with minor modifications):
Letters are being sent to businesses registered with the Secretary of State directing them to submit $49.50, respond by a certain date, complete a form, and send the money and documentation to a private entity named “California State Corporations.” According to the letter, California State Corporations will provide a “certificate of status.” However, these Certificates of Status are fraudulent because only the Secretary of State can issue a Certificate of Status. An example of the form and fraudulent “certificate of status” are available through the Secretary of State’s website at www.sos.ca.gov/business/be/alert-misleading-solicitations.htm.
A certification of the entity’s status, also known as the Certificate of Status, only can be issued by the Secretary of State who is the official custodian of business entity records for the State of California. The fee for this certificate is $5.00. The private entity has no affiliation or authorization to act on behalf of the State of California or the Secretary of State and is illegally issuing fraudulent Certificates of Status for entities registered with the California Secretary of State.
These solicitations are not being made by the California Secretary of State’s office and are not being made by or on behalf of any governmental entity. Although a business entity can use an intermediary to submit filings, request a certificate of status, and pay fees to the Secretary of State’s office, no business is required to go through another private entity in order to obtain documents or certificates from the Secretary of State’s office and no private entity can issue these documents.
If you have received a similar letter and have questions, contact out office. Additionally, if you need assistance with arbitration, buy-sell agreements, business entity formation, or outside general counsel, contact Attorney Richard Burt. Serving San Jose, CA and all of the San Francisco Bay area, Mr. Burt can be reached at (408) 286-7333 or by filling out the online contact form.