Understanding Mississippi LLC Laws

The rules for starting and running a Mississippi limited liability company (LLC) are laid out by Mississippi LLC laws.

In this guide, we offer simple explanations to Mississippi LLC laws about:

LLC Formation Requirements
Registered Agent Duties and Appointment
Operating Agreements
Annual Report Requirements

To learn more about starting an LLC, visit our form an LLC guide.

Mississippi LLC Statutory Details

Mississippi LLC laws set out the requirements for forming an LLC. The State of Mississippi has created the Business Services online portal to simplify the process.

Mississippi LLC Formation Statute

The following LLC formation statutes are from the Revised Mississippi Limited Liability Company Act:

Section 79-29-201 - Certificate of formation

(1) In order to form a limited liability company, a certificate of formation must be signed and delivered to the Office of the Secretary of State. The certificate must set forth:

(a) The name of the limited liability company;

(b) The street and mailing address of the registered office and the name and the street and mailing address of the registered agent for service of process, required to be maintained by Section 79-29-113; and

(c) If the limited liability company is to have a specific date of dissolution, the latest date upon which the limited liability company is to dissolve.

(2) The certificate of formation may set forth any other matters the members determine to include therein.

(3) A limited liability company is formed at the date and time of the filing of the certificate of formation by the Secretary of State, as evidenced by such means as the Secretary of State may use for the purpose of recording the date and time of filing, or at any later date or time specified in the certificate of formation if, in either case, the certificate of formation so filed substantially complies with the requirements of this chapter. A delayed effective date specified in a certificate of formation may not be later than the ninetieth day after the date and time it is filed by the Secretary of State.

(4) For all purposes, a copy of the certificate of formation duly certified by the Secretary of State is conclusive evidence of the formation of a limited liability company and prima facie evidence of its existence.

[Effective from and after January 1, 2013, this section will read:]

(1) In order to form a limited liability company, a certificate of formation must be signed and delivered to the Office of the Secretary of State. The certificate must set forth:

(a) The name of the limited liability company;

(b) The information required by Section 79-35-5(a); and

(c) If the limited liability company is to have a specific date of dissolution, the latest date upon which the limited liability company is to dissolve.

(2) The certificate of formation may set forth any other matters the members determine to include therein.

Start forming your LLC by reading our Best LLC Services review.

What This Means: Key Takeaways*

The Mississippi LLC statute provides the requirements for setting up (or forming) an LLC. The State of Mississippi offers online LLC filing to meet these requirements.

Required Information for Mississippi LLC Formation:

LLC’s name (Must meet Mississippi LLC naming requirements)
LLC principal office’s street and mailing address
Registered agent’s name and Mississippi address

Optional Information for Mississippi LLC Formation:

LLC organizers can add their own provisions as long as the provisions don’t conflict with LLC statute.

Recommended: For help with completing the LLC formation forms, visit our Mississippi LLC Certificate of Formation guide.

Registered Agent Duties and Appointment

Mississippi LLC laws define the duties and appointment of the LLC registered agent.

Mississippi LLC Registered Agent Statute

The following registered agent statutes are from the Mississippi Registered Agents Act:

Section 79-35-5 - Appointment of registered agent

(a) A registered agent filing must state:

(1) The name of the represented entity's commercial registered agent; or

(2) If the entity does not have a commercial registered agent, the name and address of the entity's noncommercial registered agent.

(b) The appointment of a registered agent pursuant to subsection (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this section is an affirmation by the represented entity that:

(1) The entity has:

(A) Notified the agent of the appointment; and

(B) Provided the agent with a forwarding address as provided in Section 79-35-14; and

(2) The agent has consented to serve as such.

(c) The Secretary of State shall make available in a record as soon as practicable a daily list of filings that contain the name of a registered agent. The list must:

(1) Be available for at least fourteen (14) calendar days;

(2) List in alphabetical order the names of the registered agents; and

(3) State the type of filing and name of the represented entity making the filing.

Section 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.

What This Means: Key Takeaways*

A registered agent’s job is to accept service of process (legal summons to a lawsuit).

A Mississippi registered agent must:

Maintain a registered office in Mississippi (i.e., no P.O. boxes)
Be an individual, a Mississippi corporation or LLC, or foreign corporation or LLC with a business address that is the same as the registered office address

Best Registered Agents

Learn how to choose the best registered agent for your LLC.

Best Services

Operating Agreement

Mississippi LLC laws provide guidelines for creating and maintaining an LLC operating agreement.

The following operating agreement statutes are from the Revised Mississippi Limited Liability Company Act:

Statute 79-29-123. General standards of conduct and construction and application of certificate of formation and operating agreement; scope, function, and limitations.

(1) An operating agreement must initially be agreed to by all of the members. Except as otherwise provided in subsections (2) and (3) of this section, the certificate of formation or operating agreement governs:

(a) The affairs of a limited liability company, the conduct of its business and the relations of its members among the members as members and between the members and the limited liability company;

(b) The rights, powers and duties under this chapter of a person in the capacity of member, manager, officer or other person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by the operating agreement;

(d) The means and conditions for amending the operating agreement.

(2) To the extent that: (a) the provisions of the operating agreement are not inconsistent with the certificate of formation, the operating agreement governs the matters described in paragraphs (a) through (d) of subsection (1) of this section; (b) the certificate of formation or operating agreement does not provide for the method by which an operating agreement may be amended, then all of the members must agree to any amendment of an operating agreement, except an amendment that occurs as the result of a merger with a domestic or foreign limited liability company must be approved by a majority of the members; and (c) the certificate of formation or operating agreement does not otherwise provide for a matter described in paragraphs (a) through (d) of subsection (1) of this section, this chapter governs the matter.

(3) Except as provided in this subsection (3), the provisions of this chapter that relate to the matters described in paragraphs (a) through (d) of subsection (1) of this section may be waived, restricted, limited, eliminated or varied by the certificate of formation or operating agreement. In addition to the restrictions set forth in subsections (4) and (5) of this section, the certificate of formation or the operating agreement may not:

(a) Vary the requirement set forth in subsection (1) of this section that the initial operating agreement must be agreed to by all of the members;

(b) Vary a limited liability company’s capacity to sue and be sued in its own name;

(d) Vary the power of the court under Section 79-29-209;

(e) Restrict the right to approve a merger under Section 79-29-223(e) to a member who will have personal liability with respect to a survivor;

(f) Restrict the right to approve a conversion under the Mississippi Entity Conversion and Domestication Act of a member that will have personal liability with respect to an entity following the conversion.

(g) Restrict the right to approve an asset sale agreement under Section 79-29-233(e) to a member who will have personal liability with respect to any entity;

(h) Eliminate the implied contractual covenant of good faith and fair dealing of a member, manager, officer or other person who is a party to the operating agreement or who is otherwise bound by the operating agreement;

(i) Unreasonably restrict the duties and rights stated in Section 79-29-315;

(j) Waive the requirement of Section 79-29-503(1) that a contribution obligation be in writing;

(k) Vary the requirement to windup a limited liability company’s business following the filing of a certificate of dissolution as specified in Section 79-29-801;

(l) Vary the manner of the distribution of assets in connection with the winding-up of a limited liability company’s business as required by Section 79-29-813(1)(a);

(m) Vary the power of a court to decree dissolution in the circumstances specified in Section 79-29-803(1) or to appoint trustees or receivers as specified in Section 79-29-815;

(n) Vary the requirements of Sections 79-29-817 and 79-29-819;

(o) Vary or modify any provision of Article 9 of this chapter unless otherwise expressly provided in Article 9 that the certificate of formation or the operating agreement may vary or modify such provision;

(p) Unreasonably restrict the right of a member to maintain an action under Article 11 of this chapter;

(q) Vary any requirement set forth in this chapter that an agreement must be contained in either the certificate of formation or a written operating agreement to be enforceable; or

(r) Vary any provision set forth in this chapter relating to filing, fees or any action with or by the Secretary of State’s office.

(4) The certificate of formation or an operating agreement may provide for the limitation or elimination of any and all liabilities of any manager, member, officer or other person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by the operating agreement for any action taken, or failure to take any action, as a manager or member or other person, including, for breach of contract and for breach of duties, including all or any fiduciary duties, of a member, manager, officer or other person to a limited liability company or to its members or to another member or manager or officer or to another person; provided, that the certificate of formation or an operating agreement may not limit or eliminate liability for:

(a) The amount of a financial benefit by a member or manager to which the member or manager is not entitled;

(b) An intentional infliction of harm on the limited liability company or the members;

(d) A violation of Section 79-29-611;

(e) The amount of a distribution in violation of Section 79-29-813(1); or

(f) Any act or omission that constitutes a bad faith violation of the implied contractual covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

(5) Indemnification.

(a) A limited liability company may, and shall have the power to, indemnify and hold harmless any member, manager, officer or other person from and against any and all claims and demands whatsoever, except a limited liability company and an operating agreement shall not indemnify any member, manager, officer or other person from and against any claims or demands in connection with a proceeding by or in the right of the limited liability company in which the member, manager or other person was:

(i) Found to have engaged in acts or omissions that constitute fraudulent conduct and was adjudged liable for claims based on such conduct; or

(ii) Was found to have engaged in any actions described in subsection (4) of this section and was adjudged liable for claims based on such actions.

(b) A limited liability company shall indemnify a member, manager, officer or other person who was wholly successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any proceeding to which the person was a party because the person is or was a member, manager, officer or agent of the limited liability company against reasonable expenses incurred by the member, manager, officer or agent in connection with the proceeding.

(c) Each such indemnity may continue as to a person who has ceased to have the capacity referred to in subsection (5)(a) of this section and may inure to the benefit of the heirs, beneficiaries and personal representatives of such person.

(6) General standards of conduct. Subject to the certificate of formation or the terms of a written operating agreement or other written agreement, which may expand, eliminate or restrict the following, except as provided in subsection (4)(f) of this section,

(a) A manager:

(i) Shall discharge the duties of a manager;

1. In good faith and with fair dealing;

2. With the care an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances; and

3. In a manner the manager reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the limited liability company.

(ii) Shall not be liable to a limited liability company or to another member or manager or to another person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by an operating agreement for the following:

1. For any action taken as a manager, or any failure to take any action, if such manager performed the duties of such manager in compliance with subsection (6)(a)(i) of this section.

2. For breach of fiduciary duty for the manager’s good-faith reliance on the provisions of the operating agreement.

(b) An officer:

(i) Shall discharge the duties of an officer;

1. In good faith and with fair dealing;

2. With the care an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances; and

3. In a manner the officer reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the limited liability company.

(ii) Shall not be liable to a limited liability company or to another member or manager or to another person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by an operating agreement for the following:

1. For any action taken as an officer, or any failure to take any action, if such officer performed the duties of such member in compliance with subsection (6)(b)(i) of this section; and

2. For breach of fiduciary duty for the officer’s good-faith reliance on the provisions of the operating agreement.

(i) Shall discharge the duties of a member of a member-managed limited liability company;

1. In good faith and with fair dealing;

2. With the care an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would exercise under similar circumstances; and

3. In a manner the person reasonably believes to be in the best interests of the limited liability company.

(ii) Shall not be liable to a limited liability company or to another member or manager or to another person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by an operating agreement for the following:

1. For any action taken as a member of a member-managed limited liability company, or any failure to take any action, if such member performed the duties of such member in compliance with subsection (6)(c)(i) of this section.

2. For breach of fiduciary duty for the member’s good faith reliance on the provisions of the operating agreement.

(d) To the extent that, at law or in equity, a member of a manager-managed limited liability company or other person has duties, including fiduciary duties set forth in this chapter, to a limited liability company or to another member or manager or to another person who is a party to or is otherwise bound by an operating agreement, such member’s or other person’s fiduciary duties may be expanded, restricted or eliminated by provisions in the certificate of formation or the written operating agreement.

(e) The operating agreement may:

(i) Identify specific categories of activities that do not violate the duty of loyalty;

(ii) Alter or eliminate any other fiduciary duty, including eliminating particular aspects of that duty; and

(iii) If not manifestly unreasonable, prescribe the standards by which to measure the performance of the implied contractual covenant of good faith and fair dealing under Section 79-29-123(3)(g).

(7) Any agreement relating to or governing any event, act, omission, duty, right, power or liability under or pursuant to the following sections of this chapter must be expressly contained in either the certificate of formation or a written operating agreement in order to be enforceable:

(a) Section 79-29-123(4);

(b) Section 79-29-123(6);

(d) Section 79-29-301(6);

(e) Section 79-29-303;

(f) Section 79-29-309;

(g) Section 79-29-313(1);

(h) Section 79-29-801; and

(i) Section 79-29-1211.

(8) A court of equity:

(a) May enforce an operating agreement by injunction or by such other relief that the court in its discretion determines to be fair and appropriate in the circumstances or, when the provisions of Section 79-29-803 are applicable, the court may order dissolution of the limited liability company; and

(b) Shall decide any claim under subsection (6)(e)(iii) of this section that such standard is manifestly unreasonable.

The court:

(i) Shall make its determination as of the time the challenged term became part of the operating agreement and by considering only circumstances existing at that time; and

(ii) May invalidate the term only if, in light of the purposes and activities of the limited liability company, it is readily apparent that:

1. The objective of the term is unreasonable; or

2. The term is an unreasonable means to achieve the provision’s objective.

What This Means: Key Takeaways*

An LLC operating agreement allows LLC members to create rules for how their unique LLC operates. These rules are often called “terms” or “provisions.”

Operating agreements are limited by state statute. For example, if the statute says LLC members can’t dissolve an LLC without all members agreeing, LLC members can’t change or override the statute with an operating agreement.

When an operating agreement is in place, it’s easier to navigate situations involving the operation of the LLC. And, if a lawsuit or dispute arises, LLC members (or the courts) have something to reference.

If a dispute arises that can’t be resolved by LLC members and there isn’t an operating agreement, the courts will use LLC statute to resolve disputes.

Creating an Operating Agreement

Some LLCs, such as professional LLCs or real estate LLCs, might need unique terms, while others might only need to cover standard provisions:

Each member’s responsibilities
How new members will be admitted
How existing members may transfer or terminate their membership
How profits and dividends will be distributed
The process for amending the operating agreement

Use our free operating agreement template or learn more with our What Is an Operating Agreement guide.

Annual Report Requirements

Mississippi LLC laws set out the requirements for annual LLC reporting. The State of Mississippi has created the Business Services online portal to simplify the process.

Mississippi LLC Annual Report Statute

The following annual report statutes are from the Revised Mississippi Limited Liability Company Act:

Section 79-29-215 - Annual report for Secretary of State

(1) Each domestic limited liability company and each foreign limited liability company authorized to transact business in this state shall deliver on such date as may be established by the Secretary of State, to the Secretary of State for filing an annual report that sets forth:

(a) The name of the limited liability company and the state or country or other foreign jurisdiction under whose law it is organized;

(b) The name and street or physical address of its registered agent in this state;

(d) The names and business addresses of the managers if manager-managed and the name and address of at least one (1) member if member-managed;

(e) The names, titles and business addresses of its principal officers, if any;

(f) A statement as to whether the limited liability company has a written operating agreement; and

(g) A brief description of the nature of its business.

(2) Information in the annual report must be current as of the date the annual report is executed on behalf of the limited liability company.

(3) If an annual report does not contain the information required by this section, the Secretary of State shall notify promptly in writing the reporting limited liability company and return the report to it for correction. If the report is corrected to contain the information required by this section and delivered to the Secretary of State within thirty (30) days after the effective date of notice, it is deemed to be timely filed.

What This Means: Key Takeaways*

You can file your Mississippi annual report online.

Your Mississippi LLC annual report must state the following information (and must be current as of the date of filing):

The name of the LLC
Address of principal office
Name and address of registered agent, in Mississippi
Names and business addresses of the managers if manager-managed and the name and address of at least one (1) member if member-managed
Description of nature of business
The name, title, and address of principal officers, if any
A statement as to whether there is an operating agreement

If your registered agent changes on the annual report, the annual report will be considered notice of change of registered agent.

Annual Report Due Dates:

Annual reports are due within 60 days of the anniversary date of the LLC formation each year after formation.

*This information is provided for educational and entertainment purposes only. Please consult a lawyer for legal advice.