Do I need a Lawyer or have to hire a company to incorporate?

Learning to do something yourself can be daunting in the beginning. Incorporating a business seems complicated and looks like it requires a legal degree. Doing it yourself is the quickest way to form a business. You can learn to incorporate a company without a lawyer, but how do you do this, and what are your options?

Going to an Incorporation Lawyer

When using an incorporation lawyer to incorporate you need both time and money. You need to locate two to three attorneys specializing in incorporation and research them. Interviews will help you decide who you would like to work with and trust. This process will involve traveling and take up some time. You then need to select the incorporation attorney you feel most comfortable with. 

Once you have selected an incorporation attorney, you then book an appointment. The appointment alone could be two weeks away. An attorney will typically charge about $1500.00 plus the filing fee. The time to research an incorporation lawyer, make an appointment and pay the fee makes this both time-consuming and costly.

Hire an Online Service

Many people are rushing to online services, and incorporating is no different. There are many popular online options, such as LegalZoom, Swyft Filings, or Incfile. You can incorporate a business for as little cost as $50.00 or even for free with some providers. Some service companies like LegalZoom charge $259.00 per year for a registered agent. 

Some services offer a low price to incorporate but have required add-ons or a membership fee that makes the cost prohibitive over time. Looking through numerous websites to determine what the final deal and costs are also takes time.

To obtain everything you need to incorporate this can easily make the price $600 to over $1,000 depending on the provider. This includes the following:

• Obtain a taxpayer identification number.
• Obtain S election status.
• Prepare minutes, bylaws, and stock certificate. 
• File reports with the State government.
• Retain a registered agent.

Do It Yourself Incorporating

No matter your business, you will want to start providing your services or selling your products. Incorporating and doing it right and in a cost-effective way is complicated. Trying to do it yourself gives you control over the situation but is time-consuming, and you will still have some costs.

Here are some aspects you will need to figure out:

1. Where do I go to incorporate?
2. What information is necessary?
3. How do I register?
4. How do I prepare paperwork or file online with the correct governmental agency or State government?
5. Is there anything I must include in my articles of incorporation? 
6. What address can I use? Can I and should I use my home address? What are the consequences of using my home address?
7. Is a physical address required, or can I use a Post Office Box? Can I use a private mailbox instead?
8. What's a director, who qualifies as a director, and who qualifies as an officer?
9. What is an incorporator, and who can be an incorporator? 
10. Should I add clauses to the articles of incorporation, and what clauses should I add?
11. What's a registered agent, and can I be a registered agent? Should I hire someone to be my registered agent?
12. What address do I put on annual reports with the State?

These questions are solely related to the incorporation process, and every corporation requires much more to set up. For example, how do you register a fictitious business name?

The Legal Stepz Course

Legalstepz.com teaches you everything from incorporation to obtaining a taxpayer identification number, obtaining S election status, preparing minutes, bylaws, and stock certificates, filing reports with the State government, and retaining a registered agent. S Election and whether you need to be an S corporation and do you qualify? There is more to consider when forming a business. 

Final Word

When incorporating a company in California, there are several options. You could hire an incorporation attorney, but this can be costly and time-consuming. It is possible to do it yourself, but there are many aspects to learn about, and you could miss a crucial step. This could be cheaper but particularly time-consuming. Online services may look appealing as they might appear cheaper to begin with but can have additional costs. 

Legalstepz was created by an attorney to show you all the inside information, so you can quickly and easily incorporate. At an affordable price, you can work through the incorporation process without missing any important steps.