About
Taylor Darcy, attorney.
Sole California-licensed attorney at Think Legal, P.C. California LLC formation and operating-agreement work for small business owners statewide.
California State Bar No. 317674
The short version
Background. I am a California-licensed attorney based in San Diego. Before law school I earned an MBA in financial management at National University. Before that I grew up working in my family's small business — a carpet cleaning company in Escondido — where I learned what it actually feels like to run a small business: the pressure of clients, the pressure of bills, the daily reality that nobody talks about until you live it.
Why this focus. California LLC formation is the work where I can do the most good. Every California small business owner I meet has the same questions — am I doing this right, what am I missing, what is going to bite me later. Filing services do not answer those questions. General business attorneys answer them at general-business-attorney rates. A focused California LLC formation practice — flat-fee, plain-English, attorney-assisted — is what I would have wanted my parents to have when they were running their business.
How I work with clients. I work the way I would want a lawyer to work with me: a short intake call up front to confirm scope, a written engagement letter before any payment, the work done as promised in the timeline agreed, and a reachable phone number afterward when something comes up. No surprises. No fee creep. No legalese unless it is genuinely necessary.
Credentials
- Bar admission: State Bar of California — State Bar No. 317674
- Federal court admissions: United States District Court, Southern District of California; United States District Court, Central District of California; United States Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of California; United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- Law degree: Juris Doctor, California Western School of Law (Business Law concentration, with honors)
- Graduate degrees: Master of Business Administration in Financial Management, National University; Master of Forensic Science in Investigations, National University
- Undergraduate: Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and Justice Studies, California State University San Marcos
- Teaching: Adjunct Professor of Business Law, Southwestern Community College
What I do
Focused practice areas. Not a generalist firm.
- California LLC formation →
Single-member and multi-member LLCs filed correctly with the California Secretary of State, with an operating agreement that fits.
- Multi-member LLCs →
The operating-agreement conversation that filing services do not have. Capital, distributions, departures, votes.
- Operating agreements →
Drafting and reviewing operating agreements — including for existing LLCs that were formed without one or with a weak template.
- Buy/Sell agreements →
Owner exit and buy-out provisions for LLCs with two or more owners. The business prenup.
- San Diego LLC formation →
Local San Diego practice, in-person where it helps. Statewide California clients otherwise.
What I do not do
Some things fall outside this practice. They are listed here so you know where to go for them.
-
Tax advice or tax filings
Your CPA handles all tax matters.
-
Tax election filings (S-corp, C-corp)
Your CPA prepares these. Formation work makes sure the LLC is set up so the election is clean.
-
Trademark or intellectual property work
Refer out to a trademark attorney.
-
Litigation
Refer out.
-
Bookkeeping, accounting, payroll
Your accountant handles these.
-
Ongoing general counsel retainer
Available as a separate engagement — ask if you want this in addition to formation.
How I work with clients
Every engagement runs roughly the same way. Predictable on purpose.
- 1
Intake call
A short conversation to confirm scope, fit, and timing. No engagement letter signed yet, no payment taken, no confidential information needed.
- 2
Engagement letter
A written engagement letter setting fee, scope, deliverables, and refund handling. You read it and sign it before any payment is taken.
- 3
Payment
Flat fee paid up front. State filing fees handled separately and paid to California, not to the firm.
- 4
Filing
Articles of Organization filed with the California Secretary of State. EIN application support. Initial Statement of Information.
- 5
Operating agreement
Drafted or fitted to your structure and reviewed with you. For multi-member LLCs, this is the substance of the engagement.
- 6
Wrap-up
Final delivery of all signed documents, plus a written compliance and timeline checklist for what is next (annual filings, the $800 LLC tax, Statement of Information renewals).
Why this practice exists
I started Think Legal because the small business owners I knew — starting with my parents — were not getting the legal help they actually needed. They could not afford a big-firm attorney to ask one question. They were skeptical of online filing services that promised to handle "everything" but mostly delivered a filed Articles of Organization and a generic operating agreement template. The middle ground — a California-licensed attorney who would do the work with them, at a known price, in plain English — barely existed.
This focused California LLC formation practice is the firm I would have wanted to recommend to my parents. Flat-fee where it makes sense. Plain English always. The kind of attorney conversation a small business owner actually wants to have, not a transaction they want to get through.
Outside of work
I moved to San Diego from Utah in the summer of 1989, when I was twelve, and stayed. The work below is what I do; the small business owners I do it for are why I do it.
Optional second sentence — Taylor adds something personal here, or remove this DraftNote to leave the section as one line.
[One short sentence about what you do when you are not lawyering — family, hobbies, where to find you. Optional. Skip if it does not feel right.]
Get in touch
Two ways in, depending on where you are.
Ready to start
Book a Formation Call
A short intake call to confirm scope, package, and timing. No fee for the intake call itself, no engagement signed before scope is confirmed.
Book a Formation Call →Comparing options
See pricing and what is included
Flat-fee packages with what is and is not included published openly. State filing fees are itemized separately.
See Pricing →Form your California LLC with a California attorney.
Plain-English process. Flat-fee packages. A real attorney who picks up the phone.