SECTIONS 18200-18220

18200.  (a) An unincorporated association may file with theSecretary of State, on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State, astatement containing either of the following: (1) A statement designating the location and complete address ofthe unincorporated association's principal office in this state. Onlyone place may be designated. (2) A statement (A) designating the location and complete addressof the unincorporated association's principal office in this state inaccordance with paragraph (1) or, if the unincorporated associationdoes not have an office in this state, designating the completeaddress of the unincorporated association to which the Secretary ofState shall send any notices required to be sent to the associationunder Sections 18210 and 18215, and (B) designating as agent of theassociation for service of process any natural person residing inthis state or any corporation that has complied with Section 1505 andwhose capacity to act as an agent has not terminated. (b) If a natural person is designated as agent for service ofprocess, the statement shall include the person's complete businessor residence address. If a corporate agent is designated, no addressfor it shall be included. (c) Filing is deemed complete on acceptance by the Secretary ofState of the statement, a copy of the statement, and the filing fee.The Secretary of State shall return the copy of the statement to theunincorporated association, with notations that indicate the filenumber and filing date of the original. (d) At any time, an unincorporated association that has filed astatement under this section may file a new statement superseding thelast previously filed statement. If the new statement does notdesignate an agent for service of process, the filing of the newstatement shall be deemed to revoke the designation of an agentpreviously designated. A statement filed under this section expiresfive years from December 31 following the date it was filed in theoffice of the Secretary of State, unless previously superseded by thefiling of a new statement. (e) Delivery by hand of a copy of any process against theunincorporated association (1) to any natural person designated by itas agent, or (2) if the association has designated a corporateagent, to any person named in the last certificate of the corporateagent filed pursuant to Section 1505 at the office of the corporateagent shall constitute valid service on the association. (f) For filing a statement as provided in this section, theSecretary of State shall charge and collect the fee provided inparagraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 12191 of the GovernmentCode for filing a designation of agent. (g) Notwithstanding Section 18055, a statement filed by apartnership under former Section 24003 is subject to this chapteruntil the statement is revoked or expires.18205.  (a) The Secretary of State shall mark each statement filedunder Section 18200 with a consecutive file number and the date offiling. In lieu of retaining the original statement, the Secretary ofState may retain a copy in accordance with Section 14756 of theGovernment Code. (b) The Secretary of State shall index each statement filed underSection 18200 according to the name of the unincorporated associationas set out in the statement and shall enter in the index the filenumber and the address of the association as set out in the statementand, if an agent for service of process is designated in thestatement, the name of the agent and, if a natural person isdesignated as the agent, the address of that person. (c) Upon request of any person, the Secretary of State shall issuea certificate showing whether, according to the Secretary of State'srecords, there is on file on the date of the certificate, anypresently effective statement filed under Section 18200 for anunincorporated association using a specific name designated by theperson making the request. If a statement is on file, the certificateshall include the information required by subdivision (b) to beincluded in the index. The fee for the certificate is the feeprovided in Section 12183 of the Government Code. (d) When a statement has expired under subdivision (d) of Section18200, the Secretary of State shall enter that fact in the indextogether with the date of the expiration. (e) Four years after a statement has expired, the Secretary ofState may destroy or otherwise dispose of the statement and deleteinformation concerning that statement from the index.18210.  (a) An agent designated by an unincorporated association forthe service of process may file with the Secretary of State a signedand acknowledged written statement of resignation as agent of theunincorporated association. The resignation is effective when filed.The Secretary of State shall mail written notice of the filing to theunincorporated association at its address set out in the statementfiled by the association. (b) An unincorporated association may at any time file with theSecretary of State a revocation of a designation of an agent forservice of process. The revocation is effective when filed. (c) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), service made on anagent designated by an unincorporated association for service ofprocess in the manner provided in subdivision (e) of Section 18200 iseffective if made within 30 days after the statement of resignationor the revocation is filed with the Secretary of State.18215.  Between the first day of October and the first day ofDecember immediately preceding the expiration date of a statementfiled under Section 18200, the Secretary of State shall send byfirst-class mail a notice, indicating the date on which the statementwill expire and the file number assigned to the statement, to theunincorporated association at its address as set out in thestatement. Neither the failure of the Secretary of State to mail thenotice as provided in this section nor the failure of the notice toreach the unincorporated association shall continue the statement ineffect after the date of its expiration. Neither the state nor anyofficer or employee of the state is liable for damages for failure tomail the notice as required by this section.18220.  If designation of an agent for the purpose of service ofprocess has not been made as provided in Section 18200, or if theagent designated cannot with reasonable diligence be found at theaddress specified in the index referred to in Section 18205 fordelivery by hand of the process, and it is shown by affidavit to thesatisfaction of a court or judge that process against anunincorporated association cannot be served with reasonable diligenceupon the designated agent by hand or the unincorporated associationin the manner provided for in Section 415.10 or 415.30 of the Code ofCivil Procedure or subdivision (a) of Section 415.20 of the Code ofCivil Procedure, the court or judge may make an order that service bemade upon the unincorporated association by delivery of a copy ofthe process to one or more of the association's members designated inthe order and by mailing a copy of the process to the association atits last known address. Service in this manner constitutes personalservice upon the unincorporated association.