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1) What must be in the name of an LLC? Section 105 of the Uniform Limited Liability Company Act states the following:
(a) The name of a limited liability company must contain "limited liability company" or "limited company" or the abbreviation "L.L.C.", "LLC", "L.C.", or "LC". "Limited" may be abbreviated as "Ltd.", and "company" may be abbreviated as "Co.".
Some states have slight variations upon the above restrictions so it is best to check your state law before selecting a name. Also, in some states, licensed professionals--such as doctors, lawyers, and accountants--must set up a "professional LLC" instead of a standard LLC. The easiest way to determine the peculiarities of your state law regarding the name is to look at the instructions for the form articles of organization issue by the secretary of state (or analogous government office). Click on the link to your state at the top of the right column on this page for additional information.
Checking to ensure that the name you have selected is not already in use by another organization in your state. Next, one must ensure that the selected name is still available with the state you are to organize and, also, any state in which you are going to do sufficient business to justify registering as a foreign LLC. Generally, for small and medium sized companies, one only registers to do business in a state other than where organized if the LLC sets up a business office in another state. You can check name availability by calling the secretary of state's office or, in many states, querying their online database. You also may want to reserve a name for future use if you do not plan to immediately file your articles of organization. The state links in the right column take you to a forms page; however, you should be able to find telephone numbers and/or an online database for name availability searches from the state forms page.
Step 2: Articles of Organization
Getting the proper form. The links at the top of the right column take you to the state corporate forms page. You are looking for "Limited Liability Company Articles of Organization". It is a good idea to look for a fee schedule and contact telephone numbers. A few states, such as Maryland, the District of Columbia, and North Dakota do not have a proscribed form; however, they will examples online of what your articles should look like. In such a case, download the "example" and following it verbatim. Do not skip questions unless they are marked as "optional". The following are direct links to the New York LLC Article of Organization and California LLC Article of Organization.
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LLC Formation
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