Can a Law Firm have a DBA in California or Is It Even Legally Possible?

Whether you’re a newly licensed law practitioner or a seasoned lawyer, there will come a time when you want to manage your own law firm. With no boss to report to, you are basically doing what you love while being the head of everything. It’s your business, it’s your call. Assuming you have your own law firm already, sometimes, you want to provide services under a specific name or DBA. With that said, can a law firm have a DBA in California or is it even legally possible to have one? 

In the case of one of our clients, this personal injury lawyer had already established his own law firm – servicing personal injury matters. In an attempt to expand his market, he wanted to use a DBA, like “Car Accident Guys” or “Law Tigers”. However, he still wanted to maintain his law firm name for the most part of his business. One of his goals was to have another website with his DBA to target specific niches, like motorcycle and bicycle accidents.

What is the meaning of DBA?

First, let’s define what DBA is. Technically, it means “doing business as” — it’s a “trade name” or fictitious business name. 

Why does a law firm want to use a DBA?

From a marketing perspective — doing business under a “trade name” is easier for potential clients to discover you. Going by your own name for your business means less exposure for you since no one really knows you. But when someone searches on the internet like, “attorney for car accident injuries”, and you have a business name like “Car Accident Guys, it makes it easier for them to find you. 

How to obtain a DBA name for a law firm in California?

There are legal requirements for when you are about to start a sole proprietorship or DBA in California. Whether it’s small or large, you need to abide by the laws of the state, country, city, and all laws relating to your specific business.

Basically, there are four steps in obtaining a DBA name for a law firm in California:

1. Filing for a “trade name”
2. Getting a Federal Tax ID number from the IRS.
3. Opening a bank account from a bank that specializes in business.
4. Getting a business license from the city where you run your business.

Failure to do the last step can and will result in costly legal penalties.

Can you obtain a DBA in California for a law firm while having an existing business name?

The short answer is no.  

The reason why the client can’t have a DBA while maintaining a law firm name is that the State Bar doesn’t allow it to do so. The State Bar expects the client to do business solely under the name of his corporation, according to the California law firm name rules. Furthermore, it doesn’t have a process for applying for trade names or fictitious business names. In other words, the client can’t operate a law corporation under two distinctly different business names.  

If that’s the case, where does the client leaves us now? Well, there are two options. 

First, the client can change their business name in California. However, it involves amending the articles of incorporation, redoing all corporate paperwork, filing a new certificate of registration to the State Bar, and dropping his current law firm’s name in the process. Which, all in all, requires a tedious and expensive amount of work. 

Second, the client can call the State Bar, in which he will be referred to the ethics hotline, to talk to an attorney – hoping there will be good news after discussing his situation. 

Can an existing law firm, in any legal and possible way, have a DBA in California? 

Having your own firm is one thing but obtaining a DBA in California for your existing law firm is another.  

There are several ways to expand the client’s marketing niche, like advertisements and event programs, but operating the firm under two names isn’t one of them. An existing law firm can’t legally obtain a DBA in California unless it’s officially unregistered from the State Bar. Which, by the way, requires redoing all the legal paperwork. In this case, you can always call Incorporation Attorney to handle the legal aspects of setting up your business. From the California guide to opening and managing a law office to handling potential risks/legalities of marketing under a DBA, Incorporation Attorney is here to serve you. Just dial +1 (714) 634-4838.