Registering your business as a legal entity helps to legitimize your venture, protect your personal assets, and meet practical needs such as liability protection and paying taxes. Registering your business provides tax status and guides ownership decisions and funding options.

Research different business structures (e.g., sole proprietorship, S-Corps, partnership, Limited Liability Company (LLC), corporation, cooperative, non-profit) and their implications. Create a checklist of required registrations and permits for your locality and industry. These can include, but are not limited to securing a business license, employer identification number (EIN), insurance, financial regulations, and contractual agreements.

• Attend free legal clinics or workshops offered by law schools and community organizations.
• Prioritize the most important legal aspects of launching your business and develop a timeline to support you.
• Consider bartering your services in exchange for basic legal advice from a local attorney or accountant.
• Understand the basics of the legal and regulatory requirements in your industry and impact space and seek outside expertise for more specific support. 
• Leverage specific resources and opportunities for your demographics (e.g., Indigenous innovators may be able to access specialized programs, funding, and networks by registering their businesses with their Tribal nation).