A. No foreign corporation which is conducting affairs in New Mexico without a certificate of authority shall be permitted to maintain any action, suit or proceeding in any court of this state until the corporation shall have obtained a certificate of authority. Nor shall any action, suit or proceeding be maintained in any court of New Mexico by any successor or assignee of the corporation on any right, claim or demand arising out of the conduct of affairs by the corporation in this state, until a certificate of authority has been obtained by the corporation or by a corporation which has acquired all, or substantially all, of its assets.

B. The failure of a foreign corporation to obtain a certificate of authority to conduct affairs in New Mexico shall not impair the validity of any contract or act of the corporation, and shall not prevent the corporation from defending any action, suit or proceeding in any district court of this state.

C. A foreign corporation which conducts affairs in New Mexico without a certificate of authority shall be liable to this state, for the years or parts thereof during which it conducted affairs in this state without a certificate of authority, in an amount equal to all fees which would have been imposed by the Nonprofit Corporation Act upon the corporation had it duly applied for and received a certificate of authority to conduct affairs in this state as required by that act and thereafter filed all reports required by that act, plus all penalties imposed by that act for failure to pay such fees. The attorney general shall bring proceedings to recover all amounts due New Mexico under the provisions of this section.

History: 1953 Comp., § 51-14-123, enacted by Laws 1975, ch. 217, § 81.

Cross references. — For activities not constituting conducting affairs in state, see 53-8-64 NMSA 1978.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 36 Am. Jur. 2d Foreign Corporations § 240.

19 C.J.S. Corporations §§ 901, 919.