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How Long Does It Take a Lawyer to Draft an Operating Agreement

This page explains how long it takes for a lawyer to draft an operating agreement, based on real project data from ContractsCounsel.

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Quick Facts — Operating Agreement Lawyers

Setting up an LLC ? If so, an important document you need is an operating agreement, which governs how the business will be managed, how profits are distributed, and other important terms.

If you are setting up your LLC with partners, we would recommend having a professionally drafted operating agreement to make sure there are no disputes in the future.

To help you plan, we analyzed hundreds of operating agreement projects in the ContractsCounsel platform to determine the average turnaround time for drafting.

Average Turnaround Time

The average turnaround time to draft an operating agreement is 3 to 4 business days.

If a single member LLC with a simple structure, the draft is often delivered in 1 to 2 days.

For multi-member LLCs that have custom terms, it may take 4 to 5 business days.

What Affects Turnaround Time?

The turnaround time to draft an operating agreement depends on several factors:

  • Single member vs multi-member LLC
  • Complexity of terms and required customization
  • Number of revisions rounds a client may request
  • Client preparation on the terms they want in the agreement
  • Whether a kick-off call is scheduled with the client to go over terms

Clients who are prepared with full details upfront typically get drafts delivered sooner.

Tips to Speed Up the Process

  • Upon hiring, fill out the client intake form completely
  • Review common terms included in LLC operating agreements and discuss them with your business partners
  • Ask the lawyer for a delivery date upfront and hold them accountable
  • Choose a lawyer that specializes in LLC law with experience in business formation

Real-World Example:

A three-member LLC posted a project to draft a custom operating agreement with member buyout provisions. The project received eight proposals within 24 hours. The selected lawyer delivered a first draft in three business days and finalized the agreement after one round of edits - all within a 6-day timeline.

Need Help Drafting an Operating Agreement?

Post your project on ContractsCounsel and get matched with experienced business lawyers who can draft a customized operating agreement for your LLC — quickly and at a flat rate.


ContractsCounsel is not a law firm, and this post should not be considered and does not contain legal advice. To ensure the information and advice in this post are correct, sufficient, and appropriate for your situation, please consult a licensed attorney. Also, using or accessing ContractsCounsel's site does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and ContractsCounsel.


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David U.

Attorney
Free Consultation
CO, AZ, OK
26 Yrs Experience
Licensed in AZ, CO
The University of Oklahoma College of Law

For the last 25 years I've focused on representing businesses and entrepreneurs in transactional law deals, including LLC creation, operation and sale of businesses; real estate sales and leasing; and general contract negotiation and drafting. While I've helped all manner of businesses work out a variety of contract and business matters, I am an expert at helping clients with buying and selling commercial properties including multi-family and office projects and buildings, subdivisions, and retail shopping centers. I am also a recognized expert negotiating leases for retail and office tenants and landlords. Over 25 years I've honed my skills a lawyer at one of the largest law firms in the world, an elite real estate boutique in Aspen, Colorado and a highly regarded firm based in Denver, Colorado, before starting my own practice in 2016. Since 2016 I've been helping my clients with real estate and business deals. I'm a commercial real estate and business expert with a passion for helping clients forge successful ventures in an efficient and understandable manner.

Recent  ContractsCounsel Client  Review:
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"David was very informative during our initial call, and helped me understand the scope of work that my project needed depending on how many legal avenues I wanted addressed and covered. The work he provided was detailed and completed by the deadline that he provided."

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4.6 (10)
Member Since:
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Drew B.

Managing Member
Cleveland, Ohio
28 Yrs Experience
Licensed in MO, OH
Saint Louis University

Drew is an entrepreneurial business attorney with over twenty years of corporate, compliance and litigation experience. Drew currently has his own firm where he focuses on providing outsourced general counsel and compliance services (including mergers & acquisitions, collections, capital raising, real estate, business litigation, commercial contracts and employment matters). Drew has deep experience counseling clients in healthcare, medical device, pharmaceuticals, information technology, manufacturing, and services.

Recent  ContractsCounsel Client  Review:
4.7

"Hired for a settlement contract to be written out in legal manner. Ammended contract as well to add clauses that we had not written.Efficient, professional. Said the time-frame would be about 4 business days and he did deliver on that in fact worked through the weekend and mlk day. Offered one final revision as well as a call to finalize language of contract. The final document delivery was more than we expand also he went above and beyond to deliver extra documents we may need. Would highly recommend."

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Thomas S.

Attorney
Free Consultation
Boulder, Colorado
31 Yrs Experience
Licensed in CO, NY
University of Colorado

28+ years experience. Licensed in Colorado and New York. Areas of expertise: estate planning, wills and trusts; trademark law; patent law; contracts and licensing; small business organization and counseling.

Recent  ContractsCounsel Client  Review:
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"Thomas was very knowledgeable and is great to work with! Thank you very much - looking forward working together again in the future!"

Daliah S. on ContractsCounsel
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Daliah S.

Principal Attorney
Free Consultation
Chicago, IL
22 Yrs Experience
Licensed in IL
University of Illinois College of Law

Daliah Saper operates a cutting-edge internet and social media law practice that regularly leads local and national media outlets to solicit her commentary on emerging internet law issues involving cyberbullying, sexting, catfishing, revenge porn, anonymous online defamation, domain name and user-name squatting, privacy, and the latest business decisions made by social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. As a litigator Daliah represents companies bringing or defending business and intellectual property disputes. (She has argued cases in a number of jurisdictions including taking a case all the way to the Illinois Supreme Court.) As a transactional lawyer she helps clients choose the right business entity, drafts contracts and licensing agreements, advises on sweepstakes and contest rules, and ensures website terms of use and privacy policies are compliant, and provides comprehensive trademark and copyright counseling. Since founding Saper Law Offices in 2005, Daliah has been named a 40 Under 40 by Law Bulletin Publishing Co., a top Media & Advertising attorney by Super Lawyers Magazine 14 years in a row, and has been repeatedly recognized as a leading media and entertainment lawyer by Chambers and Partners. For the past eleven years, she also has taught entertainment and social media law at Loyola University Chicago School of Law.

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Nadir C. on ContractsCounsel
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Torrey L. on ContractsCounsel
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Torrey L.

Attorney
Free Consultation
Denver, CO
8 Yrs Experience
Licensed in CO
Emory University

Torrey Livenick, Esq. is a fourth generation Colorado lawyer. Although she was born in California and raised in Nevada, she spent every summer in Colorado and knew she planned to make Denver her home. After graduating from Bryn Mawr College with a degree in Classical Culture and Society, she returned to Las Vegas to work as a paralegal. Once she spent five years building her skills and confirming her interest, she attended Emory University School of Law. Torrey’s interests include trivia (she even was a contestant on Jeopardy! during her law school days), video games, playing with her cats, and the arts. She is active in pro bono organizations including Metro Volunteer Lawyers.

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See Real Operating Agreement Projects

Delaware Drafting Operating Agreement. Add Member in existing LLC pre-revenue company with IP (software code) Drafting
  • Delaware
  • 6 lawyer bids
  • $525 - $1,300
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Kansas Drafting LLC Operating Agreement Drafting
  • Kansas
  • 3 lawyer bids
  • $800 - $2,100
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Maine Contract Drafting for a yacht charter business Drafting
  • Maine
  • 2 lawyer bids
  • $850 - $1,000
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Delaware Update Operating Agreement Drafting
  • Delaware
  • 10 lawyer bids
  • $350 - $1,500
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New Jersey MSO/MSA Agreement Drafting
  • New Jersey
  • 11 lawyer bids
  • $350 - $1,999
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North Carolina Review Operating agreement for an LLC Review
  • North Carolina
  • 8 lawyer bids
  • $400 - $850
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See all Operating Agreement projects

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Contracts Counsel was incredibly helpful and easy to use. I submitted a project for a lawyer's help within a day I had received over 6 proposals from qualified lawyers. I submitted a bid that works best for my business and we went forward with the project.

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I never knew how difficult it was to obtain representation or a lawyer, and ContractsCounsel was EXACTLY the type of service I was hoping for when I was in a pinch. Working with their service was efficient, effective and made me feel in control. Thank you so much and should I ever need attorney services down the road, I'll certainly be a repeat customer.

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I got 5 bids within 24h of posting my project. I choose the person who provided the most detailed and relevant intro letter, highlighting their experience relevant to my project. I am very satisfied with the outcome and quality of the two agreements that were produced, they actually far exceed my expectations.

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Need help with an Operating Agreement?

Create a free project posting
Clients Rate Lawyers 4.9 Stars
based on 24,466 reviews

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