Certificate of Incorporation

publicly filed certificate registering a corporate entity in a particular jurisdiction and giving the ability to transact business and exercise its rights, including form contracts, sue and be sued. Sometimes interchangeably used for articles of incorporation in certain states or the charter. Compare Articles of Incorporation. Articles of Incorporation are more precisely the documents creating an entity and describing how will it be controlled, much like a constitution. The certificate of corporation evidences that the articles have been filed, giving it legal power to operate.