Business Attorney in Arlington, VA
An Arlington, VA business attorney for the county's small and mid-size firms: Stephen Thienel handles formation, contracts, transactions, and succession, tax built in.
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Arlington now hosts Amazon’s second headquarters, Nestlé USA’s American home, and the Pentagon inside a county smaller than most cities. The Fortune 500 names draw the headlines, but the companies that keep Arlington running are the small and mid-size firms in and around National Landing, Rosslyn, and the Ballston corridor. If you own one of them, the decisions that carry real money tend to arrive without warning: which entity to form, what to sign, whom to bring on as a partner, and how to leave the company on your terms. Stephen Thienel is a business attorney who handles those decisions for Arlington companies. He has practiced for more than 26 years, holds an LL.M. in Taxation, and is licensed in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., so the tax and cross-border questions that come with building a company in this corner of the DMV stay with one attorney instead of three.
What makes doing business in Arlington different?
Arlington’s business identity was rewritten in a few short years. Amazon chose the county for its second headquarters and opened the first phase at National Landing in 2023, Nestlé USA moved its U.S. headquarters to Rosslyn, and aerospace and defense is now the county’s strongest industry cluster. That gravity pulls in the companies that serve, supply, and spin out of those giants, and each one carries a different legal load.
A government contractor near the Pentagon works on prime contracts, subcontracts, and compliance rules that shape its paperwork from the first day. A software or cybersecurity startup along the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor lives on licensing, intellectual property, and investor terms. A restaurant or service business in Clarendon or Crystal City turns on leases, staffing, and vendor deals. It is one county, but the contracts and the risks look nothing alike.
Formation and yearly upkeep run through Richmond, not the county. A Virginia LLC’s annual registration is assessed by the State Corporation Commission and generally comes due by the last day of its anniversary month, a rolling date that is easy to miss because it falls on a different day for every company. When a dispute does reach court, larger civil cases and jury trials are heard at the Arlington Circuit Court on North Courthouse Road, the 17th Judicial Circuit, while smaller civil claims go to the Arlington General District Court. Stephen is admitted in Virginia and can appear in either when a matter cannot be settled another way.
What business services does Thienel Law offer in Arlington?
When you hire Stephen, you work with Stephen. The matters below are his own, not an associate’s, and most Arlington work falls into a handful of areas:
Business formation and entity selection
You launch as the right entity for your tax and liability picture.
Learn moreContract drafting and review
The agreements your company depends on, from client and vendor deals to NDAs and teaming agreements.
Learn moreOperating and partnership agreements
Fix ownership, control, and voting before a disagreement puts them to the test.
Learn moreBusiness purchases and sales
On either side of a deal.
Learn moreBuy-sell and succession agreements
Hold ownership steady when a partner leaves, retires, or dies.
Learn moreCommercial lease review
You sign for office or retail space in Ballston, Rosslyn, or anywhere in the county.
Learn moreBusiness, tax, and estate questions rarely stay in separate lanes, so many Arlington owners engage Stephen on more than one of these over the life of the company.
Why do Arlington business owners work with Stephen Thienel?
What sets Stephen apart is reach. He practices business, tax, and estate law and is licensed in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. An Arlington company that hires across the river, opens a second location, or sells into the District works with one attorney rather than stitching together three, and because he holds an LL.M. in Taxation, the tax side of a structure or a deal is part of the same conversation instead of a separate bill.
His training lets him read a deal from more than one side. Stephen earned a J.D. at the University of Maryland, an LL.M. in Taxation at the University of Baltimore, and an M.A. in economics at Virginia Tech, where he studied under Nobel laureate James Buchanan. He weighs how a decision lands for the owner, not only how it reads on the page.
The firm’s office sits a few miles south in Alexandria, and the practice runs online by design. Secure document sharing, electronic signatures, and video meetings carry the work, so you keep your day instead of losing it to Route 1 or the Beltway. You work with Stephen directly, on terms set in writing before anything starts.
For companies that want ongoing legal coverage without a full-time hire, Stephen also serves as fractional general counsel on a steady monthly basis.
Serving Arlington
Thienel Law serves Arlington businesses in person and through secure, fully remote service, so where you are never limits the counsel you can get.
- Area servedArlington, VA
- Phone443-535-9717
- Office1520 Belle View Blvd, Ste 5392, Alexandria, VA 22307
What clients say about working with Steve
Throughout the years, Steve has been my go-to guy for business, real estate, and legal work. Steve works fast and is highly reliable. I would recommend Steve to anyone.
Unbelievably knowledgeable and responsive, particularly where it concerns ... financial planning matters. I truly feel like Steve cares about me and any issues that I bring before him - in other words, I'm much more than a client.
Reviews are published as given. Thienel Law does not offer compensation for reviews.
Frequently asked questions
Should my Arlington business be an LLC or a corporation?
It depends on how you want to be taxed, who will own the company, and whether you plan to raise outside money. An LLC gives most small companies flexibility and pass-through taxation, while a corporation can fit firms courting investors or seeking a specific tax treatment, a common path for Arlington's tech and contracting startups. Because Stephen holds an LL.M. in Taxation, he weighs the tax side of that choice with you rather than sending you elsewhere.
Do I need an operating agreement for an Arlington LLC?
It is strongly recommended, even for a single-member LLC. A written operating agreement reinforces the line between you and the company, sets out ownership, voting, and what happens when a member joins or leaves, and gives banks, lenders, and courts a clear record of how the business is run.
What does a Virginia LLC have to file each year to stay in good standing?
An annual registration with the State Corporation Commission, generally due by the last day of the LLC's anniversary month rather than on one fixed date for everyone. You also have to keep a registered agent on file continuously. Tracking that rolling date is part of the routine upkeep Stephen helps clients stay ahead of.
Do I need a separate tax attorney or CPA for a business decision?
Often not. Stephen practices tax law alongside business law and also prepares tax returns, so structuring, filing, and any dispute can sit with one advisor. When your company already works with an accountant, he coordinates with them.
Does Thienel Law have an office in Arlington?
No. The firm's office is in Alexandria, Virginia, and Stephen serves Arlington companies from there through a remote practice. The work runs on secure online meetings, document sharing, and electronic signatures, and he appears in Arlington courts when a matter requires it.
Talk With an Arlington Business Attorney
If you are weighing a decision for your Arlington company and you are ready to bring in a lawyer, the next step is a free 30-minute consultation. You and Stephen use it to size up what the company needs and to decide together whether he is the right fit. You deal with the attorney from the start, and the work runs entirely online.
- Tell Steve about your matter
- Pick a time that works