Two companies that mailed Colorado small business owners invoice-style solicitations for documents the state provides for free have agreed to pay $150,000 and permanently stop operating in Colorado. The Colorado Attorney General's Office announced the settlement with Corporate Certificates LLC and FL UCC Statement Service LLC, both registered by Florida resident Brian Capobianco, resolving a case built on tens of thousands of mailers sent to businesses across the state.
According to the Denver Gazette, Corporate Certificates LLC charged $90 and FL UCC Statement Service LLC charged $98 to retrieve or file business documents. The solicitations concerned business reports and certificates and offered paperwork through mailed pitches.
The Colorado Attorney General's Office originally filed its civil lawsuit against the two companies and Capobianco in Denver District Court on July 18, 2025, accusing them of sending tens of thousands of misleading mailers designed to look like official government invoices. State prosecutors followed that with a preliminary injunction in August 2025 ordering both companies to halt all Colorado operations, and neither has operated in the state since that order was entered, per the same account.
Warnings Ignored Before the Lawsuit
Before filing suit, the Colorado Attorney General's Office issued formal statutory notices warning Capobianco and his entities on two separate occasions in 2024. Officials said the companies continued the illegal conduct instead of correcting their mailers, doubling down on the same campaign even after being told it violated state law.
Colorado law requires commercial solicitations of this kind to carry a disclaimer in at least 24-point font stating that the offer is an advertisement not made by or on behalf of any government agency and that recipients are not required to make any payment or take any action in response. The Attorney General's Office said the companies failed to include that disclaimer, and also failed to tell recipients where they could obtain or file the same documents directly through the Secretary of State's office. State law separately prohibits solicitations from using artificial or purported deadlines that create a false impression of legal duty or urgency, a standard regulators say is meant to stop mailers that mimic government tax or compliance deadlines to pressure fast payment.
A Pattern Stretching Across Several States
Colorado is not the first state to catch up with Capobianco's operations. A Wisconsin state court issued a $3.5 million judgment in August 2024 against Centurion Filing Services, Corporate Certificates LLC, and Capobianco for targeting more than 7,000 local businesses with similar deceptive document solicitations, according to Urban Milwaukee. That judgment ordered more than $600,000 in direct consumer refunds on top of state penalties.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday announced a $40,000 settlement in April 2026 with PA Corporate Certificates, LLC and Capobianco over mailers charging $102.50 for business subsistence certificates, as reported by MyChesCo. Nearly 2,000 Pennsylvania business owners paid the inflated fees before that agreement barred the entity from operating in the state. Idaho officials also issued public warnings about mailers, a pattern that shows regulators in multiple states responding to nearly identical invoice-style pitches.
Refunds and a Permanent Ban in Colorado
Under the agreement, $95,631 will go toward direct refunds for affected Colorado business owners, and it permanently bars both companies from conducting business in Colorado. Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser, who is also the Democratic nominee for governor, said businesses should visit the Secretary of State's website directly for fee inquiries and information about filing or obtaining documents rather than relying on third-party mailers.
The required disclaimer language that Colorado law demands on such solicitations reads in part: “This is an advertisement. This offer is not being made by, or on behalf of, any government agency. You are not required to make any payment or take any other action in response to this offer.” The Colorado Attorney General's Office advises anyone who suspects deceptive marketing or fraudulent business practices to report it at stopfraudcolorado.gov.
