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Forming a Worker Coop: LLC or Cooperative Corporation?

A SELC article explaining key tradeoffs between forming a worker cooperative as an LLC or as a cooperative corporation.

Source: Sustainable Economies Law CenterAdded June 12, 2026Published 2016
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Why it matters

Entity choice shapes how democratic governance is protected, how member rights are documented, and how the co-op may be taxed.

Best for

Founder teams comparing legal structures before drafting governance documents.

This free 2016 SELC article compares cooperative corporations and LLCs through questions about governance protections, employment status, taxation, and outside investment. It explicitly discusses California law, even where some of the issue-spotting may help teams elsewhere.

Its statements about employee status, workers' compensation, securities exemptions, and Subchapter T reflect a point-in-time legal orientation. Use it to prepare entity-choice questions, not to select or form an entity without checking current state and federal law with qualified advisors.

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