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In 2016 there were 25 million Americans with their own business. Millions of people seeking help to form businesses and ensure they stay compliant with the IRS.
As start ups or new businesses, many don’t have access to in-house legal departments and so they seek companies who offer Business Formation Services and other legal services.
Companies such as LegalZoom, IncFile and MyCorporation help business owners simplify the start-up process, ensuring compliance and assisting with other legal matters when needed. Often they package their services together, which can mean more affordable services for the business owner.
By the end of this LegalZoom review, you'll know if it's the most suitable business formation service for you, or if using an alternative like MyCorporation or IncFile would be a better choice for your business.
Review of: LegalZoom
Purpose: Business Formation Service
LegalZoom is quite expensive for online business formation services.
They don’t include a free year of registered agent services like other companies.
U.S. based customer phone support, Mon-Fri 5 a.m-7pm PT. Sat, 7am-4pm PT. They also provide email support.
There are many reports of below average customer service.
There's no central user dashboard to make it easy to access your records.
If you have to stop part way through completing an order, they will give you a link you can use to gain access and finish it.
After ordering they'll email you the LLC formation documents, paper copies of your personalized Operating Agreement.
An Operating Agreement & EIN services aren't offered as part of LegalZoom LLC packages. They can be added on at an additional price.
LegalZoom is an online legal service positioned as a “one-stop shop” solution for small business’s legal needs. Founded in 2001, LegalZoom has helped over 4 million businesses and consumers resolve their legal problems. Businesses can pay a fixed rate for many types of legal work.
LegalZoom can help you start a business. Filing business formation paperwork, creating custom legal documents with e-e-signature, registering a trademark, applying for a patent or copyright protection, consulting with a lawyer and getting legal documents reviewed by a lawyer. They also provide business tax advice.
They focus mainly on small businesses that don’t have in-house lawyers or legal departments.
LegalZoom could be a good option to handle your LLC formation if you:
Here are some of LegalZoom’s features:
LegalZoom is an online legal service, not a law firm. They can provide guidance, support and help navigating legal procedures, but they cannot represent you in court, if required.
They can arrange an attorney for you if necessary.
They can help you decide which business structure suits you best. Offering a variety of formation packages to enable you to form an LLC legally and in compliance with the IRS.
This is a monthly plan which provides phone consultations with a lawyer, document review, unlimited access to legal forms, access to tax professionals, annual business evaluation (1-year plan only), 25% off attorney’s hourly rate for additional work.
In most states you're legally required to have a Registered Agent. The Registered Agent will receive legal documents and court papers for you.
As a legal plan member you can get your documents reviewed by an attorney.
They can register a Trademark which will protect your business identity.
Registering your copyright establishes a public record of your claim. This allows you to take legal action against infringement, and may entitle you to statutory damages and attorney’s fees in court.
A provisional application for patent establishes your priority filing date with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and lets you immediately start labeling your invention as “patent pending.”
Rocket Lawyer is LegalZoom’s closest competitor. They offer many of the same services, such as business formation and a legal form library. Rocket Lawyer is $20 more expensive than LegalZoom to form an LLC, the same cost to form a nonprofit, and $50 less expensive to form a corporation.
They both have a monthly business legal plan. At $39.99 per month Rocket Lawyer’s is more expensive than LegalZoom. However, as part of this plan they offer the first business incorporation for free.
The Rocket Lawyer plan also gives you unlimited phone consultations with an attorney, unlimited access to legal forms, and Document Defence, to help you enforce legal contracts.
However, the Rocket Lawyer legal plan does not include tax advice, document review, or copyright registration. If you’re looking for those things LegalZoom would be the better choice.
For new business incorporation LegalZoom isn’t the most cost-effective choice. IncFile’s sole focus is on business formation.
IncFile’s entry level business formation plan costs $0 plus government filing fees for all business entity types. They even include registered agent service for free during your business’ first year. For business formation, IncFile is the better choice.
LegalZoom offers three packages for LLC formation:
Economy: $79 + $50 CO filing fee. 30 days turnaround
Standard: $329 + $50 CO filing fee. 15 business day turnaround
Express Gold: $349 + $50 CO filing fee. 7-10 days turnaround
LegalZoom is not the most cost-effective choice for LLC formation. As you will need to pay extra fees for some vital legal requirements.
LegalZoom is an online legal technology company that helps its customers create a range of legal documents, such as LLC formation, wills and living trusts, copyright registrations, and trademark applications.
Various prices depending on the service you require. The cost of forming a LegalZoom LLC ranges from $79 to $359 plus filing fees (between $50-$500), depending on the package you select (and the state you’re in).
Legal Zoom has been established for over 20 years and has assisted over 4 million customers during this time.
LegalZoom offers better quality legal forms than Rocket Lawyer, and they are less expensive. Rocket Lawyer charges an average of $59.95 for most of its business forms, LegalZoom charges only $14.95.
Yes they are. However, to make them legal documents they must be signed in the relevant place when they arrive.
‘LegalZoom were brilliant start to finish’ Steve Wright
“I had never started a business before, so LegalZoom was a perfect place to go. It let me take my vision for the company and make it a reality, legally.” Verified review
LegalZoom is one of the oldest and most well-known online legal services.
You can find a range of options to help you through legal situations, whether it’s forming a business, creating a custom legal document, or consulting with a lawyer.
Their business legal plan is a great value for small businesses who may need occasional legal help and don’t have an in-house lawyer or legal department.
If you're considering LegalZoom purely to help you form an LLC, then you might be better checking out MyCorporation or IncFile.
If you're looking for tax advice, document review, or copyright registration, then LegalZoom could be a great choice.
