A summons may be served on a corporation that has forfeited its charter or right to do business, or has dissolved, by delivering a copy of the summons and of the complaint:
§ 416.20.Service On Corporation that Has Forfeited Charter Or Right to Do Business
Title 5. Jurisdiction and Service of Process · Chapter 4. Service of Summons · Article 4. Persons Upon Whom Summons May Be Served · Last amended 1977 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 416.20 allows a summons to be served on a corporation that has forfeited its charter, lost its right to do business, or dissolved by delivering it to one of its trustees, or as otherwise authorized by specific Corporations Code provisions.
Full Text of § 416.20
(a) To a person who is a trustee of the corporation and of its stockholders or members; or
(b) When authorized by any provision in Sections 2011 or 2114 of the Corporations Code (or Sections 3301 to 3303, inclusive, or Sections 6500 to 6504, inclusive, of the Corporations Code as in effect on December 31, 1976, with respect to corporations to which they remain applicable), as provided by such provision.
Plain-English Summary
Section 416.20 covers corporations that no longer exist in good standing. A summons may be served on such a corporation — one that has forfeited its charter or right to do business, or has dissolved — by delivering a copy of the summons and complaint to a person who is a trustee of the corporation and of its stockholders or members, or, when authorized by specific Corporations Code provisions, as those provisions direct.
This service method is what triggers the jurisdictional consequence in § 410.60: once summons is served on one trustee under this section, the court gains jurisdiction over all the corporation’s trustees and its stockholders or members as a group.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you serve a corporation that has been dissolved or lost its charter in California?
Section 416.20 allows service by delivering the summons and complaint to a person who is a trustee of the corporation and of its stockholders or members.
Do you have to serve every trustee individually?
No. Section 410.60 provides that serving one trustee under § 416.20 gives the court jurisdiction over all of the trustees and the stockholders or members as a group.
Is there another way to serve a forfeited or dissolved corporation besides serving a trustee?
Yes. Subdivision (b) allows service as authorized by specific Corporations Code provisions governing forfeited or dissolved corporations, as those provisions direct.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats. 1977, Ch. 235.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: serving a dissolved corporation california summonsservice on forfeited corporation trusteesuing a corporation that lost its charter california