Consequences of transacting business without authority

(a) A foreign corporation transacting business in this State without a certificate of authority shall not maintain a proceeding in any court in this State until it obtains a certificate of authority. (b) The successor to a foreign corporation that transacted business in this State without a certificate of authority and the assignee of a cause of action arising out of that business shall not maintain a proceeding on that cause of action in any court in this State until the foreign corporation or its successor obtains a certificate of authority. (c) A court may stay a proceeding commenced by a foreign corporation, its successor, or assignee until it determines whether the foreign corporation or its successor requires a certificate of authority. If it so determines, the court may further stay the proceeding until the foreign corporation or its successor obtains the certificate. (d) A foreign corporation that transacts business in this State without a certificate of authority shall be liable to this State, for the years or parts thereof during which it transacted business in this State without a certificate of authority, in an amount equal to all fees that would have been imposed by this chapter upon the corporation had it duly applied for and received a certificate of authority to transact business in this State as required by this chapter and thereafter filed all reports required by this chapter, plus all penalties imposed by this chapter for failure to pay the fees. The attorney general shall bring proceedings to recover all amounts due this State under this section. (e) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b), the failure of a foreign corporation to obtain a certificate of authority shall not impair the validity of its corporate acts or prevent it from defending any proceeding in this State.