Key Facts
- Abdilla and Associates represents owners in the purchase and sale of Illinois small businesses.
- Abdilla and Associates quotes a business sale at $3,500 to $5,500 for one location sold with its building.
- A business sale with five or more employees or specialized equipment is $5,500 to $7,500 at Abdilla and Associates.
- Abdilla and Associates forms an Illinois LLC for a $750 flat fee, with the state filing fee included.
- Abdilla and Associates reviews a contract under 10 pages for $350 and handles commercial evictions for a $2,000 flat fee.
- Abdilla and Associates has handled more than 700 transactions and closed more than $54 million in deals since 2014.
Fees verified October 12, 2026. Firm figures are from Abdilla and Associates records.
A buyer sent you a letter of intent last night. The price looks good. The letter also asks you to stop talking to other buyers for 60 days.
Or your landlord sent a lease renewal that asks for your personal guarantee. Or a customer stopped paying and stopped answering your calls.
Each of these is a document problem. I fix document problems for a price you know first.
What Does a Small Business Attorney Cost in Chicago?
Most of my business work has a published price or a published range. The rest gets a quote after a free call, before I start the work.
| Service | Fee | How it is priced |
|---|---|---|
| Business sale, one location | $3,500 to $5,500 | Quoted after the LOI |
| Business sale, 5+ employees | $5,500 to $7,500 | Quoted after the LOI |
| Larger operation | From $7,500 | Priced on request |
| LLC formation | $750 flat | State fee included |
| Contract review | $350 | Under 10 pages, then hourly |
| Commercial lease review | Quoted after a free call | For business tenants |
| Commercial eviction | $2,000 flat | Court costs included, no appeals |
| LLC court representation | Quoted after a free call | Suits by or against LLCs |
| Private placement memorandum | Flat-fee quote | After a free call |
| App launch audit | $199 | Credited to the $1,250 fix |
| Judgment collection | Quoted after a free call | Money judgments you hold |
Source: Abdilla and Associates fee schedule, verified October 12, 2026. Business sale ranges are not flat fees. I quote one flat fee for the whole sale after I read the letter of intent. The larger tier covers operations with 10 or more employees, crews, warehouses, or fleets.
Should I Call a Lawyer Before I Sign a Letter of Intent?
Yes. Call before you sign the letter of intent, not after.
I studied 196 letters of intent filed with the SEC. Of the 50 that sold operating businesses, 34 granted the buyer exclusivity. Sixty days was the common anchor. Exclusivity means you stop talking to other buyers for that period. You lose your leverage the day you sign.
My work on a business sale covers the whole deal:
- Review of the letter of intent before you sign
- Drafting or review of the purchase agreement
- Tax clearance steps with the Illinois Department of Revenue
- The purchase price allocation on Form 8594
- Representation at the closing table
My guide to selling a business in Illinois walks through each stage. Buying a business with its building? My due diligence checklist lists what I review before a buyer closes.
What Do I Bring to a Chicago Business Sale?
I bring deal volume and my own research on how Chicago businesses sell.
The letter study covers 104 deals. Only 50 of them sold an operating business, and the exclusivity figures above use those 50. Method: letter of intent study. The 650 figure counts SBA 7(a) change-of-ownership loans in Cook County, fiscal 2018 to June 30, 2026. It is not every sale. Cash, conventional, and seller-financed deals do not appear in it. Data: Chicago business value statistics.
Holding a Letter of Intent or a Lease?
Send it to me. I will tell you what it binds you to, and I will quote the work before I start.
Free 30-minute consultation. No obligation. Consultations are confidential.
What Business Owners Say
Reviews from owners I have represented
"Justin filed the CBS-1 the day I handed him the purchase agreement. By the time the buyer's attorney realized we needed tax clearance, it was already back from the Department of Revenue. That would have held up closing by a month if he hadn't gotten ahead of it."
"The buyer's attorney wanted to allocate half the purchase price to my non-compete. Justin structured the deal as goodwill and business intellectual property instead, which saved me about $18,000 in taxes. I had no idea the allocation mattered that much until he explained it."
"Thank you Justin for taking your valuable time to go over the steps of a quit claim deed with me, and also educating me on the swiftest way to incorporate the process and save money! You are the best!"
Which Business Services Does This Office Handle?
The office handles business sales, LLCs, contracts, leases, commercial evictions, LLC lawsuits, offering documents, app launches, and collections.
Sell or Buy a Business: From $3,500
Letter of intent, purchase agreement, tax clearance, and closing. One flat quote after I read the letter of intent.
Buyer Due Diligence
Buying a business with its building? I review title, the survey, zoning, leases, and service contracts before you close.
LLC Formation: $750 Flat
Articles, operating agreement, and EIN, with the state filing fee included. A guide for operating businesses is coming soon.
Commercial Leases and Contracts
Lease review for business tenants is quoted after a free call. Other contract review is $350 for a contract under 10 pages.
Commercial Eviction: $2,000 Flat
For landlords with a commercial tenant who stopped paying. Court costs and the process server are included. Appeals, jury demands, and collection are not.
LLC Court Representation
Your LLC needs to sue, or someone sued it. I appear for the LLC. Quoted after a free call.
Private Placement Memoranda
Raising money from investors? I draft the disclosure package. Flat-fee quote after a free call.
Software Founders: $199 Audit
Launched an app? The $199 launch audit is credited to the $1,250 privacy fix within 30 days.
Judgment Collection
You won a money judgment and the debtor has not paid. Quoted after a free call: (630) 839-9195.
Frequently Asked Questions About Small Business Legal Fees
At Abdilla and Associates, an LLC is $750 flat with the state filing fee included. A business sale is $3,500 to $5,500 for one location sold with its building. It is $5,500 to $7,500 with five or more employees or specialized equipment. Contract review is $350 for a contract under 10 pages, then $350 an hour. A commercial eviction is $2,000 flat. Appeals, jury demands, and collection are not included. Lease review, LLC lawsuits, offering documents, and collections are quoted after a free call.
Both. I quote one flat fee for the whole deal after I read the letter of intent. Buyers and sellers pay the same ranges.
Call before you sign the letter of intent. In my study of SEC-filed letters, 34 of 50 operating-business letters granted the buyer exclusivity. Sixty days was the common anchor. Exclusivity means you stop talking to other buyers for that period.
In an asset purchase, the buyer files the bulk sales notice under 35 ILCS 120/5j. The deadline is no later than 10 business days before the sale. A buyer who skips it can become personally liable for the seller's unpaid tax under the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act. That liability is capped at the reasonable value of the property acquired. The notice does not apply to a sale of the entity itself.
Yes. Commercial lease review for business tenants is quoted after a free call. Other contract review is $350 for a contract under 10 pages, then $350 an hour.
Yes. I form LLCs for operating businesses for the same $750 flat fee. The fee includes the operating agreement and the state filing fee.
Yes. The first call is a free 30-minute consultation with no obligation. Consultations are confidential.
Sources
- Firm fees and volume: Abdilla and Associates records, verified October 12, 2026.
- Bulk sales notice: 35 ILCS 120/5j, Retailers' Occupation Tax Act.
- Letter of intent figures: my study of 196 SEC-filed letters. Method: letter of intent page.
- Cook County acquisition count: SBA 7(a) loan FOIA data through June 30, 2026. Computed on the business value statistics page.
- Client reviews: quoted verbatim from published reviews.