You could save hundreds of dollars by incorporating yourself without a lawyer. How? Is it advisable to do so?

1. This is Not Legal Advice!

The only ones who should be giving legal advice are those licensed to practise law (in other words, only lawyers). This article is not legal advice. If you need legal advice, consult a lawyer.

This article is being written simply to inform you that it is possible to form a corporation or limited liability company without a lawyer.

2. Why Use a Lawyer?

First of all, if you make a mistake incorporating yourself, who do you sue? You only have yourself to blame. On other hand, a lawyer has insurance to cover errors and omissions.

Secondly, you could benefit from expertise of your lawyer. Perhaps a corporation isn't right vehicle for you under your circumstances. Be aware that there can be disadvantages as well as advantages to incorporating. Your lawyer can consider commercial law, securities legislation, limited liability, tax factors, estate planning, share structure, and a myriad of other business considerations. Sometimes advice of a good lawyer can save you thousands of dollars.

3. Is it Advisable to Incorporate Yourself?

Is it advisable to perform surgery on yourself? It is illegal to perform surgery on someone else unless you are licensed to practise medicine, but perhaps in a wilderness survival scenario, self-surgery might be your only option. However, is performing surgery on yourself really a good idea in most instances?

Likewise, just because it is possible to incorporate yourself without a lawyer doesn't mean it is always a good idea.

In some jurisdictions, only lawyers can incorporate others. For a paralegal or other person to incorporate a company for you could be considered unauthorized practise of law. Thus, it may be legal to incorporate yourself but not others.

Some factors you might consider are: Am I really that short of cash that I can't spend extra money for good legal advice that may save me thousands of dollars? Am I confident that my situation is one that really doesn't need services of a lawyer to incorporate? Can money saved on legal fees be better utilized in financing other aspects of my business?

Each person will have to make their own decision on whether or not to seek services of a lawyer in forming a corporation.

The comparison in size between a single molecule sliding down a nanotube and size of computer mouse is actually vast beyond comprehension. But there are bigger things like Apple sitting near my mouse. It's an IMac and still small by computer standards. Apple Employed over 175,000 people worldwide in 1999 and they are considered a "small" company because they have "only" five percent of personal computer market. Just a tiny fraction you might say. Nearly nothing. Almost invisible.

But Apple is not quite too tiny to see. They are size of a tasty bit of fruit worthy of a snack by investors and, with over a BILLION Dollars in bank - in CASH - Appple might be said to be doing well by most standards. Certainly by my standards. I am one of those itsy-bitsy single molecules sliding down nanotube of business. I am too tiny to see and so are you. In fact nearly fifty percent of US economy fits in that category of too tiny to see. Under 10 employees earning less than ten million per year. We are invisible.

But how can half of anything be invisible you say? Half of economy is too tiny to see? Well, apparently so. Must be dark side of moon. The back half that is not visible to anyone.

My tiny mind took this invisible path this evening after reading a paragraph at end of a CBS Marketwatch news story. A paranthetical afterthought to REAL news reads: