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About LLC Operating
Agreements
In some respects, Operating
Agreements play a similar role as bylaws play in a corporation.
The Operating Agreement is the central document that governs the
internal workings of your corporation. The Operating Agreement will
normally address topics like:
Who will manage
the business of the LLC
Who are the members (owners) and what are their respective
ownership shares.
How are profits and losses allocated among the owners.
Some state laws do not
legally require you to have an operating agreement, but it is never
wise to operate a company without adopting such an agreement. Without
an operating agreement, there are no internal rules for operating
or governing the company. This can lead to unnecessary disputes
between owners over a variety of issues that can arise on the normal
operation of a business.
Perhaps even more importantly,
the lack of an operating agreement can be used to show that your
company does not have a separate legal existence and that you have
treated it as an alter ego. This can lead to loss of separation
of liability and can expose the personal assets of the owners to
the liabilities that arise with the company. Therefore, even single
owner LLCs should maintain formalities including the adoption of
an operating agreement.
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