Wyoming Corporate Bylaws
What are Wyoming Corporate Bylaws?
Corporate bylaws are the documents that govern your corporation in Wyoming. A corporation’s bylaws lay out the day-to-day operations of the business, addressing who does what, how the board of directors operates, when the annual meeting will be held, conflict resolution protocol, and how rules can be changed.
Wyoming statutes do not require corporations to adopt corporate bylaws, but if you incorporate in Wyoming, you’ll want bylaws to govern how your corporation operates and to show banks, credit agencies, and possibly the IRS that your corporation is operating above board on all fronts.
As part of our standard Wyoming incorporation service, we include a standard set of corporate bylaws at no additional charge.
Are corporate bylaws public record?
Unlike your Articles of Incorporation, the bylaws are not recorded in the public records.
Does a Wyoming corporation need to have bylaws?
There is no legal requirement for a corporation to create bylaws, but they are important for various reasons. Your bylaws are a road map for how your company will operate internally. Most banks and investors will want to get a good look at your corporation’s internal documents, including your bylaws, before they decide to lend you any money. If you plan to run a fully fledged, professional corporation, corporate bylaws are a must.
Are corporate bylaws legally binding?
Corporate bylaws are legally binding, and generally enforceable as a contract between the members of the corporation. Violations of corporate bylaws can result in fines and damages awarded for losses to other members within the corporation. In some extreme cases, criminal charges could even be filed with regards to the breaking of corporate bylaws.
Do I have to include my name and address on my bylaws?
Yes. The name of your company, the names of shareholders, and the names of initial members must be included. This is how ownership of your company will be identified.
If you leave names and addresses off your bylaws and ownership of the corporation is ever disputed, you may wind up in court. A judge will determine who owns what based on whatever available evidence exists, which means properly filling out the bylaws and including pertinent personal information is a must. Since your bylaws are an internal document, you won’t have to worry about a breach in privacy.
How do I make amendments to my bylaws?
When writing your bylaws, it is a good idea to include a section about how to amend the bylaws. You can download standard amendment forms online and fill them out whenever you need. Amendments do not need to be filed with the state.
Wyoming Corporate Bylaws Template
The idea of crafting a set of bylaws for your Wyoming corporation may be scary, but when you hire us to from your corporation, we can set you up with a custom set of bylaws at no extra cost, just another example how we go the extra mile for all of our customers.
Each set of bylaws will be specific to each organization, but the basic components of corporate bylaws are as follows:
Statement of Purpose: Pretty straightforward here. What does your business do? Why are you in business? How will your corporation reach its goals? Basically your statement of purpose describes what you do and why you do it.
Board of Directors: Corporate bylaws commonly include information that specifies, for example, the number of directors the corporation has, how they will be elected, their qualifications, and the length of their terms. It can also specify when, where, and how your board of directors can call and conduct meetings, and voting requirements.
Shareholders’ Meetings: One of the most important requirements a corporation has is its annual shareholder meeting. This bylaw will outline exactly when shareholders are entitled to receive notice with regards to shareholder meetings, and where and on what date meetings will take place.
Stock and Dividends: This is where you will set into your corporation’s law exactly who will be entitled to receive stock in the company, the different classes of stock that will be issued and to whom, and how the transfers of stock shall be made.
Officers: Officers are generally employees of a corporation, although they don’t always have to be. Your bylaws should include provisions for electing and appointing officers, and to specify whether or not these officers will be board members and what responsibilities they will have.
Indemnification: To indemnify someone is to absolve that person from responsibility for damage or loss arising from a transaction. You’ll most likely want to include a provision that protects your corporation’s directors and officers from any liability that they may be exposed to because of their association with the corporation.
Amendments: The only thing that stays the same is change, and in this case, adding an amendments provision to your corporate bylaws will allow your corporation to review and change any necessary rules or regulations as challenges arise.
Best Wyoming Registered Agent Corporate Experts!
When you hire us to form your Wyoming Corporation, not only will we expertly guide you and your new business through the formation process, we’ll also include a standard set of bylaws that you can change to fit your needs. Get started today!