3 ms·

1. You can probably file LLC papers with your state (or another state) for ~$200. I did that for my first company and didn't hire a lawyer until 3 years later.

1. You can probably file LLC papers with your state (or another state) for ~$200. I did that for my first company and didn't hire a lawyer until 3 years later. I highly recommend doing this before you launch your startup. You really should talk to a lawyer before launch, but this is better than nothing. 2. Nothing stops someone from stealing your idea, except: (a) patents, (b) copyright, (c) trade secrets. You only have to file paperwork for (a), not (b) or (c). 3. You can build on someone else's idea, unless it violates (a) or (b). (c) only protects you as long as it remains secret. 4. Talk to a lawyer. :)

tstegart 18y ago
re: #2. Actually, that doesn't stop them either, only your willingness to sue them and the amount of money you have to sue them with does.
- deleted 18y ago
  [deleted]
spencerfry 18y ago
(RE: #1) That's fine and dandy for LLC documents, but if you're working with partners and don't have a clear Operating Agreement written out then you're asking for trouble. I had serious issues with my first successful startup because our Operating Agreement was basically pieced together from little things my partner and I found on the Net with collaboration from a first year Yale law school student. Terrible, terrible, terrible idea. To make a long story short: the company became wildly successful very quickly and re-doing the Operating Agreement wasn't really on the top of our minds -- it never is when you're doing well. Then three years later the two of us grew apart and wanted to take the company in different directions. Sadly, we had a poorly written agreement that made this a very difficult process with lawyers on both sides fighting to interpret it. If you do nothing else, I'd say get this done professionally sooner rather than later.
- tstegart 18y ago
  Yeah, my advice was definitely for a one person company. Two people should get it done professionally. With one person the focus is on protecting yourself from others. With two or more, the focus is not only protecting the principals, but regulating the relationship between the principals and the process by which that relationship might end. One thing a good lawyer will make you do is think about what will happen if your company breaks up, and they can advise you on how to structure your document to avoid a giant litigation mess.
  - netcan 18y ago
    The better then nothing bit still applies.
- jon_dahl 18y ago
  Agreed. If you have partners, employees, licensing agreements, or any other contracts, then you should hire a lawyer for good organizational documents. And don't copy & paste out of a book or website. :) This is true even if you're good friends with your partners. Or maybe even especially if you're friends with your partners. :)
rms 18y ago
I have been told that you also have to do a few things to make your LLC "real", like get a bank account with your EIN and keep occasional records of meetings. Go here to get the EIN free online. http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00.html http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00....
- trevelyan 18y ago
  Depends where your business is registered. Different jurisdictions place different reporting requirements on business. Some jurisdictions require business residency and address. This guy needs to talk to an accountant who does this sort of thing rather than a lawyer. My recommendation is that if you will need to bill people online using credit cards, set something up in the United States if at all possible. Doing the paperwork yourself will save you a bit of cash as will opening your own corporate bank account. You will NEED a US-based bank account (not necessarily corporate) in order to set up a merchant account somewhere as anything but a high-risk company (which basically means you pay more for processing and find it more difficult to get a merchant account and access to a processing gateway). The major advantage of being incorporated here is that you can bill people in the name of your company, rather than as an individual. We are registered in the BVI. The setup is a dream as far as accounting and tax liabilities go for the organization itself, but it has been a major pain in the ass trying to get our banking affairs in order. It isn't as if you really save money with offshore companies until you are profitable anyway, and even after that you're still liable to treat corporate income as personal income until ownership is significantly diluted. If you're looking for an environment in which company books are essentially closed, it's not a bad call. If I were American, I would probably have registered in Delaware.

tstegart 18y ago

re: #2. Actually, that doesn't stop them either, only your willingness to sue them and the amount of money you have to sue them with does.

deleted 18y ago
[deleted]

spencerfry 18y ago

(RE: #1) That's fine and dandy for LLC documents, but if you're working with partners and don't have a clear Operating Agreement written out then you're asking for trouble. I had serious issues with my first successful startup because our Operating Agreement was basically pieced together from little things my partner and I found on the Net with collaboration from a first year Yale law school student. Terrible, terrible, terrible idea. To make a long story short: the company became wildly successful very quickly and re-doing the Operating Agreement wasn't really on the top of our minds -- it never is when you're doing well. Then three years later the two of us grew apart and wanted to take the company in different directions. Sadly, we had a poorly written agreement that made this a very difficult process with lawyers on both sides fighting to interpret it. If you do nothing else, I'd say get this done professionally sooner rather than later.

tstegart 18y ago
Yeah, my advice was definitely for a one person company. Two people should get it done professionally. With one person the focus is on protecting yourself from others. With two or more, the focus is not only protecting the principals, but regulating the relationship between the principals and the process by which that relationship might end. One thing a good lawyer will make you do is think about what will happen if your company breaks up, and they can advise you on how to structure your document to avoid a giant litigation mess.
- netcan 18y ago
  The better then nothing bit still applies.
jon_dahl 18y ago
Agreed. If you have partners, employees, licensing agreements, or any other contracts, then you should hire a lawyer for good organizational documents. And don't copy & paste out of a book or website. :) This is true even if you're good friends with your partners. Or maybe even especially if you're friends with your partners. :)

rms 18y ago

I have been told that you also have to do a few things to make your LLC "real", like get a bank account with your EIN and keep occasional records of meetings. Go here to get the EIN free online. http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00.html http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=102767,00....

trevelyan 18y ago
Depends where your business is registered. Different jurisdictions place different reporting requirements on business. Some jurisdictions require business residency and address. This guy needs to talk to an accountant who does this sort of thing rather than a lawyer. My recommendation is that if you will need to bill people online using credit cards, set something up in the United States if at all possible. Doing the paperwork yourself will save you a bit of cash as will opening your own corporate bank account. You will NEED a US-based bank account (not necessarily corporate) in order to set up a merchant account somewhere as anything but a high-risk company (which basically means you pay more for processing and find it more difficult to get a merchant account and access to a processing gateway). The major advantage of being incorporated here is that you can bill people in the name of your company, rather than as an individual. We are registered in the BVI. The setup is a dream as far as accounting and tax liabilities go for the organization itself, but it has been a major pain in the ass trying to get our banking affairs in order. It isn't as if you really save money with offshore companies until you are profitable anyway, and even after that you're still liable to treat corporate income as personal income until ownership is significantly diluted. If you're looking for an environment in which company books are essentially closed, it's not a bad call. If I were American, I would probably have registered in Delaware.