When the company is incorporated, the article of incorporation is the first basic document. It is the documented proof of the creation of the company, the corporate purposes, and the corporate powers. It authorizes the capitalization of the stock. It must be filed with the Secretary of State after paying an appropriate fee and having it notarized and signed by the incorporators.The Secretary of State issues the certificate of incorporation after signing it and declaring the corporation to be a legal body as of its date of incorporation.The bylaws and the amendments of the articles of incorporation adopted by the corporation are integral to the proper running of a corporation.Copies of share certificates issued are filed and documented, as is the stock ledger with the folio pages.

The company must document the financial records and maintain a current balance sheet, a profit and loss statement document, and a host of other documents related to the corporate finance. The company must keep safe bank statements, records of all payments made for transactions, the fees received and the scale of pay of each of its employees. There are documents concerning dividends and the type of dividends agreed on by the board of directors and the shareholders, the various resolutions proposed. These resolutions include those that the quorum accepts and the resolutions that the quorum rejects.The minutes of all meetings, the consent in lieu documents, the notices, the waivers of notices, the stock subscription agreement, the alphabetical list of shareholders for a meeting, and the proxies for a meeting are other important documents.