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Does a corporation need to file a fictitious business name? In what situation would it be good for a small business corporation to use a fictitious business name? These are a few of the questions that are commonly asked by newly incorporated companies in Orange County. Andy Gale of Incorporation Attorney provides advice on this topic through the Quick Question Service. This offer is open to all the small businesses that our law firm has helped incorporate. 

Does a Corporation Need to File a Fictitious Business Name?

Incorporation Attorney Law Firm Offers Advice for Small Business Corporations in Orange County through the Quick Question Service

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Andy Gale of Incorporation Attorney is a well-experienced corporate lawyer based in Orange County, California that helps small businesses incorporate. Learn more about his services by clicking here!

At Incorporation Attorney, we have helped a vast number of small businesses in Orange County form a corporation, but what happens after an enterprise has been incorporated? Most entrepreneurs will begin to get correspondence from the federal government, from the internal revenue service, from the state of California, etc. When this happens, most corporation owners no longer know what to do next.

Some businesses try to find answers to their questions through online services. The problem with resources on the Internet is that there is no one to actually talk to. Entrepreneurs benefit more from a legal counselor that they can converse with in person. In many cases, the persons providing information on the web are not licensed to give legal advice on various subjects. These are the reasons why even after our law firm has helped our clients form a corporation, we do not leave them behind. We continue our relationship with them, and we make sure that our business attorneys are available for them.

We believe that a prudent business lawyer’s responsibilities do not end after a company has incorporated. This is why we created the Quick Question Service. Questions that business owners might have can be addressed through this service. Our competent corporate lawyers are available for our clients over the course of the year after their businesses have been incorporated.

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Our Quick Question Service makes our business lawyers available for our clients after we have helped them incorporate.

Advice from Corporate Lawyer on Filing for a Fictitious Business Name in California

Our business lawyers here at Incorporation Attorney law firm have many years of experience in helping and giving advice to companies on how to incorporate. One of the most common questions is about filing for a fictitious business name.

Real Case Scenario of a Client that Needed to File for a Fictitious Business Name in Orange County

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We recently received a call from one of our clients that we helped incorporate. The newly formed corporation was doing well with business. The client called us because he wanted to develop a second business and have it appear to the general public as though it was an enterprise completely separate from his corporation. The client asked us whether he should set up a second corporation to run the new business.

Andy Gale’s law firm gave this client advice on what he should do to proceed with his plan. When starting a second business that will appear separate from the corporation, the business owner only needs to file for a fictitious business name.

How to File for a Fictitious Name for Your Company?

The process of filing for a fictitious name for your business is very straightforward. The first step is to apply for the name that you want. You simply need to go down to the county where your company is operating. Then, you need to file an application with the county recorder. The County recorder will understand that you plan to start a business that is different than your original corporate name but would be operated under the same corporate umbrella. For a certain fee, you will be allowed to file the application. You will be permitted to use the fictitious business name, as long as no other business is using that name.

After the process of filing an application for a fictitious business name is complete, the next step is publication. You need to publish the application or the new name in a newspaper of general circulation over the course of a number of weeks. Once this is finished, you may start using the business name.

If, for example, you have a corporation that is called ABC Incorporated, you can file for an application to start a second business with Happy Balloon Company as its fictitious business name. You can hold yourself out to the public under the names of both of these businesses.

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Opening a Separate Bank Account for Your Second Business

If you are actually generating money in your second business, it is advisable that you open a new banking account using the fictitious name paperwork along with your other corporate documents. It is easier to run two companies when you can organize their individual finances in separate bank accounts.

Over time, if your second business becomes successful, you can decide to split the two companies. This way, you can own the original corporation, and then you can incorporate the second business using its fictitious business name.

Need More Advice from a Small Business Lawyer in Orange County?

Andy Gale of Incorporation Attorney is a well-experienced corporate attorney based in Orange County, California. He and his law firm has helped many small businesses incorporate, and continue to give legal advice to them. Making sure that his clients are satisfied with his services is a top priority for him. For more information about Andy, contact him today at +1 (714) 634-4838!

 


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Andy Gale is a Small Business Attorney in Orange County, California.

Hi! My name is Andy Gale.

I’m a small business attorney. One of the more routine matters that come up in my practice is dealing with clients who are interested in either buying or selling a business. One of the more common questions that come up is, “what’s the first step in the process?” In order to help my clients conceptualize and understand the process sort of from that 10,000-foot level, what we’ve done is we’ve created an infographic, which we’re going to go through here in just a second. It helps our clients understand what the flow is going to be for the actual transition of the business from one person to another. So let’s just dig in and we’ll just take the first few steps now.

Tips for Small Businesses in California

Checklist of Buying and/or Selling a Small Business.

Checklist of Buying and or Selling a Small Business

When it comes to buying or selling a business, the entire checklist breaks down into essentially three main parts.

The first part is the location of the business, the negotiation of the material terms, and the drafting of a purchase agreement.

The second is phase is what we call the pre-closing phase. That’s where once we’ve got a purchase agreement, the agreement is sent over to ESCROW, and the ESCROW is opened. And the parties go through their due diligence process. And then finally once the contract is negotiated, once the due diligence is completed, and once the closing occurs that is that the business is exchanged for the cash.

Then we get into the final phase, which is post-closing obligations. A lot of times when a business is sold, once the deal happens, there are still ongoing obligations of both the seller and the buyer.

When Should a Small Business Engage with a Corporate Lawyer?

So I have clients at this point that say, “Okay, Andy. I really do understand the process. It seems incredibly complicated. When is the best time for us to engage a business attorney like you?” And my advice always is, “You want to do it as soon as you possibly can.” So in this particular flow, what you’d want to do is locate the business. Make sure that this is the business that you want to buy and/or this is the person you want to sell the business to. After you’ve made that first step and you’ve started to lay out from a business standpoint what the terms of the transaction are going to be that’s where you engage your small business attorney. So you need help walking through this process or really understanding it in a little bit more depth, we’re here to help you. We specialize in helping small business owners either buy or sell businesses and then help them with their formation of appropriate business entities to make sure they get the maximum tax benefits, make sure they get the maximum liability protection.

My name is Andy Gale. Thank you!

See the video and infographic about “Buying and or Selling an Orange County Business