You registered your LLC, built your brand, and put your name on everything. But your business name isn't automatically protected—and the gap between what owners assume and what the law actually covers can be an expensive surprise. Here's what Oregon and Idaho small business owners need to know about trademarks, trade secrets, and copyright before something goes wrong.

Contracts with clients protect projects; the contract among co-owners protects the business itself. Part 3 of the contracts series: what Oregon's defaults do to owners who never wrote anything, which document your entity needs, and the five decisions it must make.

An independent contractor agreement has two jobs: the commercial one — scope, payment, ownership, exits — and the one templates can't do: documenting, element by element, that the relationship is genuinely independent under Oregon's classification tests.

Every service business has a contract with every client — written or not. Part 1 of the contracts series: defining done, structuring payment so leverage stays with you, Oregon's reciprocal attorney-fee rule, and the protective clauses nobody reads until it matters.

Family business succession in Oregon is three separate questions — who runs it, who profits, who controls — plus an estate tax that arrives on the business's own value. Here's how to answer them deliberately, before the defaults answer them badly.

If you own an Oregon business and you are married, your ownership interest is property a divorce court can divide, even if your spouse was never involved. Here is how Oregon treats a business in a divorce, what happens to your business partners, and what your operating agreement can do about it.

An Oregon LLC protects you from the company's debts, not from everything. Personal guarantees, your own conduct, and veil piercing are the three ways owners get sued by name.

Thinking of using your LLC to run multiple businesses? Here's when it works, when it doesn't—and how a holding company might be the smarter move.

Wondering how to actually take money out of your LLC? Whether you're a sole member or have partners, here's what you need to know to get paid—legally and smartly.

If you're running an Oregon or Idaho business without a dedicated bank account, you're not just being disorganized—you’re risking your liability protection. Here’s how to set things up the right way.

Starting a business with friends or family? Here’s how to structure your multi-member LLC in Oregon or Idaho to avoid deadlock, drama, or disaster down the road.

Every co-owned business eventually loses an owner — and Oregon's default rules for what happens next are almost never what you'd choose. A buy-sell agreement replaces them with triggers, a price, and funding you actually picked.

LLC or S-Corp? If you’ve heard you’re “leaving money on the table,” read this first. Here’s when the S-Corp election makes sense—and when it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

Nearly every rule in Oregon's LLC statute begins with "except as provided in the operating agreement." The defaults it writes for companies without one — no exit, no buyout, voteless heirs, unanimous-consent dissolution — are the case for drafting your own.

Yes—you do. Here’s what a registered agent actually does, what happens if you get it wrong, and why it matters more than most small business owners realize.

LLCs aren’t just for big businesses or six-figure side hustles. If you’re making money, taking on risk, or signing contracts, here’s when—and why—to stop operating as a sole proprietor in Oregon or Idaho.

Many small businesses start as sole proprietorships by default. But that simplicity can come at a high cost. Here’s what every Oregon and Idaho entrepreneur needs to know.

If you’re selling a product or service and haven’t formed an entity, you’re a business owner by default. Here’s why that matters—and how the right structure protects you.