united-states, legal, llc, iowaFor some reason our landlord claims that the IRS wants them to list [my name] dba [my LLC] as the tenant on our lease. This makes no sense to me since the LLC is a legal entity registered with the state, has its own EIN, and all of the company’s assets are assigned to the LLC rather than to me.
The property manager is listed as [corporation name] dba [fictitious name], and they seem to understand that it would be incorrect to list it as [corporate officer’s name] dba [corporation name]. I understand that corporations and LLCs are different legal entities but I’m trying to understand whether it is correct to refer to an LLC as a DBA and why it wouldn’t be treated the same as a corporation when naming parties in a legal document.
Should the lease list my LLC as the tenant, or is it correct to list my name as the tenant and list the LLC as a DBA?
The phrase “doing business as” (abbreviated DBA, dba, d.b.a. or d/b/a) is a legal term, and has a very well defined meaning, that being it’s a non-legal alias for a legal name given to a legal entity.
The facts, as presented in your question, as they relate to the landlord’s claims, make no sense in my opinion, since the LLC’s name is not an alias, trade name, fictitious business name, etc. under which you are conducting business.
If your landlord is representing claims made by the IRS, I would suggest that you get that in writing, since it sounds fishy to me, and if false, might be a criminal offense.
This has been stated before by others, but you really need to consult a legal professional on this matter and start looking for other options for your lease.
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