Forming a Corporation in California? Get Ready to Wait
California’s budget crisis is affecting how quickly entrepreneurs can form their business entities: Standard turnaround time for hand-delivered Articles of Incorporation now is close to four weeks. (The situation for limited liability companies [LLCs] is better at two weeks, though still much longer than it was just half a year ago – see LLC Formation in Record Time.)
Update as of November 3, 2010: LLC formation time now has stretched out to approximately three weeks.
According to the filing service that I use in Sacramento, this is the worst turnaround time they have ever experienced and is attributable to the Secretary of State not filling empty staff positions because of the State’s budget problems.
Fortunately, if quick turnaround is important, 24-hour expedited filing is available for an additional fee of $350.
This blog does not provide legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. If you need legal advice, please contact an attorney directly.
Dana Shultz is a business-savvy lawyer located in Northern California's San Francisco Bay Area (in the East Bay, near Oakland) who has in-depth knowledge of law, business, technology, and the needs of startup and early-stage companies.