A formation agent is a service provider that incorporates companies on behalf of others, often at scale. Formation agents appear as organizers or incorporators on state filings, sometimes across thousands of entities. Their presence can be a risk indicator when assessing shell company potential.
Company Creation Services
Formation agents handle the paperwork of business creation:
- Filing articles of incorporation or organization
- Obtaining EINs
- Providing registered agent services
- Creating corporate kits and documents
Legitimate Market
Formation services serve real needs:
- Entrepreneurs unfamiliar with filing requirements
- Attorneys handling client formations
- Accountants setting up business structures
- Businesses expanding to new states
The Scale Problem
Some formation agents operate at industrial scale:
- A single individual or entity name appears on thousands of filings
- Mass formations can occur on the same day
- Identical patterns (same agent, same address, same formation date) repeat across entities
The "Lovette Dobson" Pattern
Investigations have revealed individual names appearing as organizer on tens of thousands of entities—some legitimate, others linked to fraud schemes. When a name or entity appears across massive numbers of formations, it warrants investigation.
Role
- Formation Agent: Creates the entity
- Registered Agent: Receives legal documents
Appears on
- Formation Agent: Initial filing as organizer/incorporator
- Registered Agent: Ongoing as agent for service
One-time vs. ongoing
- Formation Agent: One-time involvement
- Registered Agent: Ongoing relationship
Risk signal
- Formation Agent: Mass formations may indicate shell company factory
- Registered Agent: Agent-only address may indicate no real presence
A single service often provides both functions, but they represent different risk considerations.
Risk Indicators
Formation agent patterns that warrant scrutiny:
- Volume: Name appears on thousands of filings
- Clustering: Many entities formed on same date
- Minimal variation: Identical addresses, similar names
- No other presence: Entities have no operating indicators
- Fraud associations: Agent linked to known bad actors
Not Automatically Suspicious
Mass formation activity isn't inherently criminal:
- Large law firms form many client entities
- Corporate service companies have legitimate volume
- Franchise operations create many similar entities
Context matters—formation agent presence is one signal among many.
Detection Approach
- Identify formation agent patterns in filings
- Check volume across jurisdictions
- Look for clustering (date, address, naming patterns)
- Cross-reference against known problematic agents
- Assess in context with other risk factors
The Regulatory Gap
Unlike registered agents, formation agents face limited regulation:
- No licensing in most states
- Minimal due diligence requirements
- Limited reporting obligations
- Easy to operate anonymously
This gap enables mass formation of potentially problematic entities.
Key Takeaways
- Formation agents incorporate companies on behalf of others
- Some operate at massive scale—thousands of formations
- Volume and clustering patterns signal potential shell company factories
- Formation agents ≠ registered agents—different roles, different risks
- Context matters—mass formation isn't automatically suspicious but requires investigation
Related: Registered Agent | Shell Company | Secretary of State
