Duty of secretary of state to file — Review of refusal to file — Delivery of record by secretary of state.
R.I. Gen. Laws § 7-13.1-210
in effect7-13.1-210. Duty of secretary of state to file — Review of refusal to file — Delivery of record by secretary of state.
(a) The secretary of state shall file a record delivered to the secretary of state for
filing which satisfies this chapter. The duty of the secretary of state under this
section is ministerial.
(b) When the secretary of state files a record, the secretary of state shall record it
as filed on the date and at the time of its delivery. After filing a record, the secretary
of state shall deliver to the person that submitted the record a copy of the record
with an acknowledgment of the date and time of filing.
(c) If the secretary of state refuses to file a record, the secretary of state shall,
not later than fifteen (15) business days after the record is delivered:
(1) Return the record or notify the person that submitted the record of the refusal; and
(2) Provide a brief explanation in a record of the reason for the refusal.
(d) If the secretary of state refuses to file a record, the person that submitted the
record may petition the superior court to compel filing of the record. The record
and the explanation of the secretary of state of the refusal to file must be attached
to the petition. The court may decide the matter in a summary proceeding.
(e) The filing of or refusal to file a record does not:
(1) Affect the validity or invalidity of the record in whole or in part; or
(2) Create a presumption that the information contained in the record is correct or incorrect.
(f) Except as otherwise provided by § 7-13.1-121 or by law other than this chapter, the secretary of state may deliver any record
to a person by delivering it:
(1) In person to the person that submitted it;
(2) To the address of the person’s registered agent;
(3) To the principal office of the person;
(4) To an electronic address the person provides to the secretary of state for delivery;
or
(5) By providing, at no cost to the filer, access to a downloadable copy of the record
from the secretary of state’s online corporate database.
(g) Notwithstanding that any instrument authorized to be filed with the secretary of state
under this chapter is filed inaccurately, defectively or erroneously executed, sealed
or acknowledged, or otherwise defective in any respect, the secretary of state has
no liability to any individual for the preclearance for filing, the acceptance for
filing or the filing and indexing of such instrument by the secretary of state.
P.L. 2022, ch. 121, § 2, effective January 1, 2023; P.L. 2022, ch. 122, § 2, effective
January 1, 2023.
Source: State of Rhode Island General Assembly (rilegislature.gov)URL: https://webserver.rilegislature.gov/Statutes/TITLE7/7-13.1/7-2/7-13.1-210.htmFetched: 10/20/2026