Direct answer
A ROBS transaction can involve documents used to implement the ROBS structure, independent advice about plan fiduciary and corporate decisions, and ordinary business-law work for the company being bought or launched. IRS materials describe a C corporation sponsoring a qualified plan that receives rollover assets and buys employer stock.[1][2] The same IRS materials flag promoter fees, valuation, discriminatory operation, reporting failures and legal issues as problem areas.[1][2]
DOL materials require fiduciaries to use a prudent process, pay only reasonable plan expenses, compare service providers with complete and identical information, and follow plan documents.[3][4] For the broader cash picture, compare this page with the complete ROBS cost guide, then separate provider setup work from the ROBS setup-fee guide and valuation-specific work from the employer-stock valuation cost guide. A comparable legal-fee quote requires matched facts, client, scope, exclusions, payer, timing and pass-through assumptions.
Legal work by transaction stage
Each stage can involve a different client, document set and professional duty, so the engagement letter should match the stage being reviewed.
Provider package versus independent advice
Provider pages show why scope must be read line by line. FranFund publishes a $4,995 setup fee including attorney consultation on corporation and 401(k) plan formations.[7] Benetrends states that incorporation, legal, administrative and state filing fees are included in its ROBS plans.[8] Guidant publishes a starting ROBS price and describes ERISA attorney access in the same pricing context as separate plan administration, SBA, payroll, tax, bookkeeping and valuation services.[6] My Solo 401k and Accelefund publish lower setup fees with document and formation support, and their written scopes still need to be matched to the buyer's legal questions.[9][10]
| Provider | Published setup price | Legal-scope clue | Question to ask |
|---|---|---|---|
| My Solo 401k Financial | $3,000 | Setup includes first-year support and formation documents; the pricing page frames legal scope as document and support work rather than a separately retained attorney engagement. | Ask whether any attorney represents the corporation, the plan, the provider, or no client relationship at all. |
| Accelefund | $4,500 | Includes plan and trust documents, stock subscription agreements and an attorney in its professional specialist group; state fee and partner add-on may be extra. | Ask which documents are templates, which are attorney-reviewed for the client, and who pays any separate counsel. |
| FranFund | $4,995 | Includes attorney consultation on corporation and 401(k) plan formations plus formation and stock-certificate assistance; $165 monthly TPA is separate. | Ask whether acquisition, franchise, lease, employment, securities, tax and dispute work are outside the quoted setup scope. |
| Benetrends Rainmaker | $4,995 | States incorporation, legal, administrative and state filing fees are included, plus plan creation and stock-investment records; monthly administration is separate. | Ask for the actual engagement scope and whether Roth Advantage pricing changes the legal-service scope. |
| Guidant Financial | Starting at $5,495 | Publishes ERISA attorney access and separate service context for SBA, payroll, tax, bookkeeping and valuation; the written agreement should define which service line covers each task. | Ask for included attorney-access limits, excluded business-law work and separate service-line prices. |
Those published amounts are first-party commercial facts checked on July 31, 2026. They establish what the providers say, charge or offer; adequacy for a specific transaction depends on the written scope and professional review.
Client, conflicts and privilege
Before paying an invoice, identify the client. The attorney may represent the corporation, the plan fiduciary, the plan sponsor, the individual owner, a buyer group, a lender, a seller, or the provider. The answer controls privilege, conflicts, instructions, file access and who can rely on the advice. DOL notes that attorneys and accountants are generally not fiduciaries when acting solely in their professional capacities, while fiduciary status turns on functions performed for the plan.[3]
Conflicts matter because the plan buys employer stock from or through parties connected to the new corporation. DOL identifies prohibited transactions involving sales, exchanges, services and self-dealing with parties in interest, while the IRS ROBS memorandum develops prohibited-transaction issues around employer-stock valuation.[2][3] A setup consultation may answer formation questions, while a qualified attorney with ERISA experience may be needed when the plan fiduciary is deciding whether the stock purchase is prudent, fairly valued, conflict-managed and documented for the plan.
Plan, corporate and personal payer boundaries
The payer should follow the service recipient, plan document, engagement letter and tax advice. DOL materials say plan expenses may be paid by the employer, the plan, or both, and that the plan document should specify how fees are paid.[3] DOL also places legal and trustee services within plan administration fee examples, while fiduciaries must determine whether services are necessary and costs reasonable.[4] Owner personal tax advice, acquisition negotiation, franchise review, lease negotiation, corporate formation, and dispute work each require payer analysis before plan assets are used.
The clean way to compare is to label each invoice line: plan expense, corporate expense, personal expense, pass-through cost, financing cost, acquisition cost, valuation cost, CPA/payroll cost, or uncertain. Use an ERISA attorney for plan-asset payment and prohibited-transaction questions, a tax professional for deductibility and individual/corporate tax treatment, and a valuation professional when the legal decision depends on employer-stock value.
Quote normalization framework
Normalize quotes by asking each provider and attorney for the same facts, then separating professional fees from pass-through costs and excluded work.
Reproducible calculations
The following illustrations are hypothetical calculations, not estimates for a real transaction. They use stated assumptions so the math can be reproduced independently.
Documents, timing and risk questions
Use this document list to identify which professional is responsible before the rollover stock purchase, business closing, employee onboarding, amendment, correction, sale or plan termination step occurs.
- Engagement letter naming client, scope, payer, privilege and exclusions
- Provider service agreement and fee schedule
- Corporate formation records and stock ledger
- Plan, trust, adoption agreement and amendments
- Rollover, subscription and stock-purchase records
- Valuation report and fiduciary approval record
- Business purchase agreement, FDD, franchise agreement or lease
- Employee census, notices, Form 5500 history and correction records
Timing should leave room for independent review before documents are signed and before rollover assets buy stock. Legal scope usually needs more detail when the corporation already exists, a seller requires fast closing, a franchisor imposes deadlines, employees are about to become eligible, a lender requires specific equity-injection documentation, or valuation support will affect the plan fiduciary's decision.
FAQ
These answers summarize the boundaries a buyer should clarify in writing before treating any provider or attorney price as comparable.
Are ROBS legal fees included in provider setup fees?
A package may include formation documents, plan documents, attorney consultation, or ERISA attorney access. Independent legal advice requires an engagement scope that identifies the client, payer, covered issues, exclusions, deliverables and limits.[6][7][8][9][10]
Who should retain the attorney in a ROBS transaction?
The work determines the client. The corporation may retain corporate or acquisition counsel, the plan fiduciary may need counsel for plan and fiduciary issues, and the individual may need personal tax, employment or conflict advice. One lawyer may have conflicts that prevent representing every party.[2][3][4]
Can the plan pay ROBS legal fees?
Plan assets should pay only invoices that the plan document, service recipient, fiduciary process and professional review support as reasonable plan expenses. DOL materials say plan expenses may be paid by the employer, the plan, or both, and the plan document should specify how fees are paid.[3][4]
What legal work can arise after setup?
Annual administration, employee eligibility, amendments, valuation coordination, prohibited-transaction questions, Form 5500 issues, audits, corrections, stock redemption, business sale, failure and plan termination can all create legal questions after the initial stock purchase.[1][2][3]
How should a buyer compare legal-fee quotes?
Normalize each quote by stage, client, included deliverables, excluded issues, hourly or flat-fee terms, pass-through costs, privilege and conflict rules, timing, revision limits and who coordinates valuation, CPA, lender and provider tasks. A comparable quote requires matched facts, client, scope, exclusions, payer, timing and pass-through assumptions.[3][4][6][7][8][9][10]
Sources and verification
Sources were reopened on July 31, 2026. Provider prices and included-scope statements are first-party claims and may change. The eCFR source is official API text used only for the bounded securities-law review point.
- IRS ROBS Compliance Project
ROBS structure, determination-letter limits, disqualification risk, Form 5500/Form 1120 issues, promoter-fee concern, valuation concern, employee-participation problems and business-failure findings.
- IRS Guidelines Regarding Rollovers as Business Start-Ups
Typical C corporation, qualified-plan, rollover and employer-stock purchase sequence; case-by-case analysis; promoter-fee fact pattern; nondiscrimination; valuation and prohibited-transaction development.
- DOL Meeting Your Fiduciary Responsibilities
Written plan, trust, fiduciary prudence, reasonable plan expenses, service-provider comparison, payer allocation, prohibited transactions, employer-stock considerations and reporting responsibilities.
- DOL Understanding Retirement Plan Fees and Expenses
Plan administration, legal and trustee services, bundled and unbundled arrangements, complete-and-identical quote information, compensation disclosures and ongoing monitoring.
- 17 CFR Part 230, Securities Act Rules
Official eCFR API text for Securities Act rules and regulations, used only to support the bounded point that employer-stock issuance can raise securities-law review questions.
- Guidant Financial pricing
Provider-published 401(k) Business Financing starting at $5,495, 401(k) Plan Administration starting at $149 monthly, and references to audit protection, ERISA attorney access, SBA, payroll, tax, bookkeeping and business valuation service lines.
- FranFund pricing
Provider-published $4,995 401(k) Business Funding setup fee, attorney consultation on corporation and 401(k) plan formations, listed formation and stock-certificate items, and required $165 monthly TPA fee.
- Benetrends ROBS/RAPS cost article
Provider-published Rainmaker setup fee of $4,995, $155 monthly administration, stated incorporation, legal, administrative, state filing, minutes, bylaws, stock issuance, plan creation, transfer coordination and appraisal assistance.
- My Solo 401k Financial pricing
Provider-published $3,000 setup fee with first-year annual support, corporation formation, state registration fees, bylaws, plan, EINs, transfer forms and $899 annual fee beginning 12 months later.
- Accelefund pricing
Provider-published $4,500 setup fee, $1,000 deposit, state-fee reimbursement note, partner add-on, plan and trust documents, stock subscription agreements, initial cash value appraisal, attorney specialist group and $99 monthly administration.