Indiana Business Law BlogArticles Posted in Small Businesses
Indiana Series LLCs, Part VII: Income Taxation
Indiana Series LLCs, Part VI: Ownership structures
If you are not already familiar with series LLCs or with the new Indiana series LLC statute that takes effect on January 1, 2017, you may want to read the articles at Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, and Part V.
In the first of these articles, I compared a series LLC to a parent LLC with subsidiary LLCs, and I stated that one difference between the two concepts is that a master LLC does not own its series in the same sense that a parent company owns its subsidiaries. Instead, the interest that makes up each series is held by persons who may or may not also hold interest in the master LLC or in other series. Although I believe that is commonly the way series LLCs are set up, I think it may be possible to set up a series LLC so that the master LLC does, in fact, hold part or all of the interest in its series. Let’s look at four possible structures, using the example of a real estate developer than develops and owns three apartment buildings.
Structure #1
Indiana Series LLCs, Part V: Series LLC Operating Agreements
[The previous articles on this topic are here: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV.]
Now that we’ve discussed the formal public filings necessary to set up a master LLC and series, we’ll turn out attention to the content of operating agreements.
As mentioned in the last post, every master LLC must have an operating agreement, and prudence dictates that it be in writing, even though the statute does not, at least not expressly. As a starting point, the operating agreement for a master LLC should have all the same elements as an operating agreement for a traditional LLC.
Indiana Series LLCs, Part IV: Setting up an Indiana Series LLC
The first article on series LLCs contained some basic concepts and terminology. The second and third ones addressed the fundamental questions of whether a series is a separate entity (answer: yes, but it lacks some of the attributes of a separate entity) and of what defines or constitutes a series (answer, at least as contemplated by the Indiana statute: a portion of the interest in the master LLC designated as the series). We’ll return later to some other metaphysical questions, but this article discusses the more mundane issue, how does one set up a series LLC in Indiana?
Organizing the Master LLC
As with a traditional LLC, a master limited liability company is formed by filing articles of organization[1] with the Indiana Secretary of State. Ind. Code § 23‑18.1‑3‑1 and § 23‑18.1‑6‑1. An existing LLC can be converted to a master LLC with appropriate amendments to its articles of organization, but the amendment requires unanimous consent of the members, regardless of any provision of the operating agreement permitting the articles of organization to be amended with less than unanimous consent. Ind. Code § 23‑18.1‑3‑2. It appears that it is permitted, but not necessary, for the articles of organization to include the names of the series that may be designated. See Ind. Code § 23‑18.1‑6‑7, discussed below.
Indiana Series LLCs, Part III: What constitutes a series?
[Please read Part I and Part II before reading this article.]
The second of this group of articles on series limited liability companies addressed the question of whether a series is an entity under Indiana law and concluded that the best answer is probably, yes, even though it lacks some of the attributes that one would ordinarily expect of an entity. But exactly what is it that makes up a series?
The definition of “series”
Indiana Series LLCs, Part II: Is a series an entity?
[This is the second of several articles on series LLCs, especially Indiana series LLCs. Go here for Part I, which includes an introduction to the concept of series LLCs and some terminology.]
Is a series an entity?
That’s the question almost every lawyer asks when first introduced to series LLCs. It is really shorthand for a lot of other questions: Can a series enter into its own contracts? Can it sue and be sued in its own name? Can assets be titled in the name of the series, as opposed to the name of the master LLC? And so on.
Indiana Series Limited Liability Companies, Part I: Introduction
This is the first of several articles about series limited liability companies in general and Indiana’s new series limited liability company statute in particular – a “series series” of articles. (Sorry. I couldn’t resist.)
Even as lame as that joke is, it demonstrates that terminology in this area can be very confusing, and the confusion is compounded by the fact that the series LLC statutes in different states use different words for the same concepts. Here are some rules I’ll follow throughout these articles.
- Generally, I’ll stick with the definitions contained in the Indiana statutes, and I’ll let you know when I don’t.
Benefit Corporations and Small Businesses — Part V
This is the final installment in a series of articles dealing with Indiana’s new benefit corporation statute in general and its applicability to small businesses in particular, and we now arrive at the ultimate question: Is it a good idea for a small businesses to incorporate as (or to convert to) a benefit corporation?
In our opinion, the best choice of entity for most small businesses is a limited liability company, not a corporation, and the new benefit corporation statute does not change that opinion. Although we think the benefit corporation statute is an excellent addition to Indiana corporate and business law, we believe the Indiana LLC statute already has enough flexibility to permit LLCs to adopt the same governing principles, policies, and procedures that are pre-packaged in the benefit corporation statute without giving up the other advantages that LLCs have over corporations in general.
First, the Indiana Business Flexibility Act allows LLCs to be organized for “any business, personal, or nonprofit purpose,” which certainly seems broad enough to include the combination of business and public benefit purposes for which benefit corporations are created. Second, all of the governance, transparency, and accountability provisions of the benefit corporation statute can be incorporated into a limited liability company’s operating agreement. Finally, certification as a B-Corp is not restricted to benefit corporations – essentially any form of business entity is eligible to be certified as a B-Corp, including LLCs.
Benefit Corporations and Small Businesses — Part IV
[This article is written by Rep. Casey Cox (R-Fort Wayne), the author of Indiana’s new benefit corporation statute and an attorney in the Fort Wayne office of Beers Mallers Backs & Salin, LLP, where he practices in the areas of business and corporate matters, real estate, and local government law. As we developed this series, Rep. Cox was very generous with his time and his insights into the new statute. For that and for this article, we are grateful, and we thank him. — MS]
The last few decades have seen a dramatic increase in the number of investors who not only seek a financial return but also want to invest their money is socially and economically responsible businesses, as well as an increase in the number of consumers who want to purchase goods and services from those businesses. Many of them are frustrated by the number of companies who claim to be good corporate citizens but do not provide the transparency for investors and consumers to prove it.
The Potential Drawback to Transparency