Operating agreement

Operating agreements

One document, three ways to meet it: write your own clause by clause, read the one a sponsor hands you, or compare what your state's default rules impose when your agreement is silent.

The operating agreement is the constitution of an LLC, and most people meet it in one of three situations. You are writing one and need to know what each clause should say. Someone has handed you one and you need to read it for the traps before you sign. Or you never wrote one at all, and you need to know what rules your state imposes by default. This pillar covers all three.

Every LLC has an operating agreement. If you did not write one, your state legislature wrote it for you, and you have never read it.

Writing your operating agreement The drafting manual, clause by clause: what to write, and what your silence costs when the statute fills the gap. 12 guides Reading a sponsor's operating agreement The document a sponsor hands a passive investor, analyzed clause by clause from both chairs: what each provision does for the sponsor, and what it costs you. 22 guides Operating agreements by state The default rules that govern when your agreement is silent, compared state by state, read from the statute. 16 states

Start with the one that matches your situation. If you are building a company, write. If you are being asked to invest in someone else’s, read. If you want to know what the law assumes when the document says nothing, compare.

This is all free.

For anything involving the filing or management of your LLC, I'm your LLC guy.

If you need help with your operating agreement, you don't have to figure out who to call. Start with me. I'll understand what you need, and with my gigantic Rolodex, I can put you in touch with the right specialist for you.

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