actually its a very good strategy 3 shell compNIES 2 BASED IN DUTCH TERRITORIES and one based in ireland... pretty much zero tax and virtually impossoble to pierce corporate shield

Never hurts to marry one either.... :-)

Well that depends on many factors. There is no one entity that covers all. I would say for most of us, LLC filing as an S-Corp but that is only because of the size of our companies.

What Steve does do, is he shows you how to setup your books so your not spending a ton of time on them for no good reason.

ya but thats kind of a thing of the past now. They are coming down hard on it. [Link: money.cnn.com]

Same here.. LLC and I file as an S-Corp..

I was a sole proprietor for the first 10 years in business and just files a S-Corp this year.  Like others I'd received varying answers and information from CPA and Attorneys.  I'm on my 3rd CPA now and didn't really feel comfortable I was getting the right answers until I got the latest CPA and my attorney in the same room together for an hour.

That meeting costs over $1k but I finally felt good about the advice I was given.  Good legal and tax advice is really expensive here.  My attorney is $475hr and the CPA is $500hr... both have junior associates that can handle some of the busy work for $175-$250hr.

Every attorney I have every hired seems next to useless. I wind up doing most of the leg work myself and say to myself what the F did i even hire this guy for.

In fact just recently I left that exact message to my attorneys secretary. I said you know what you tell mr attorney that if he doesn't return my call within the hour I will be finding a new attorney. I stated, I did not hire an attorney so i have to still sit here doing all the legwork. I didn't hire an attorney to put me on the back burner for three weeks and who can't be bothered to return my numerous calls or emails. I expect to be provided the service I am paying for.

so the guy calls me back 45 min later. Promises he will look over everything in the AM and get back to me by noon. 2 weeks later still waiting for that call.

Some people man i'm telling ya. From now on the second I try to hire an attorney i am going to make it cut and dry. I plan to tell them straightup that every prior attorney i have hired is essentially useless. They can't return calls, emails, I wind up doing most of the work myself and half the time i feel more educated then them. So if this is how you also intend to provide me with service I will A. Not hire you at all. B. If you promise good service and don't deliver you too will be fired.

I am so sick and tired of people who cannot do what they say they are going to do. It seems about 85% of my encounters are this way.

p.s. how the hell did you get both of them in the office together at the same time?

Find good people. I had my accountant talk to my financial planner. My accountant also talked to my lawyer too. I actually have a great group of guys! My accountant specializes in small businesses. He actually works with lawyers to set them up, helps with payroll, retirement, workers comp, insurance, etc. I really cannot say enough nice things about my accountant.

I can't say that I haven't had some similar issues with the attorney, but he seems better than most.  What's interesting about my attorney is that he used to be a licensed contractor and ran an electrical company so he at least undertands the industry.

I task my CPA with setting up the meeting.  His office contacted the attorney and set the meeting about 3 weeks out when everyone could make it.

I used to be sole proprietor until I realized that a single lawsuit could take away my family's house, cars, savings, etc.
Now I'm LLC without much profit, so no need to file as S-Corp -- yet.
My business taxes are pass-through to my personal 1040 as per my accountant.

As my lawyer told me - there is nothing that can stop someone from suing you on a personal level anyway regardless of your classification. Will they win? who knows but it will not be free to find out.
your lawyer will gladly take your house, car, savings. ect as payment

ever seen a car wreck where everyone from the car maker to the guy who paved the road got sued regardless who was at fault?