Question:  My LLC is to be the tenant on a real property lease.  The landlord’s lease has a signature block that indicates I will sign the lease as the manager and as a member of the LLC.  The signature block looks like this:

World Wide Widgets, LLC, an Arizona limited liability company

By:_______________________________
Homer Simpson, Manager and Member

If I sign the contract will I be personally liable under the lease in addition to the LLC?

Answer:  Probably.  If you sign the contract with the signature block as indicated above the landlord will claim you signed the contract in your capacity as the manager of the LLC AND in your individual capacity as a member.  A court might agree because that is the strict reading of the text under your signature.  Arizona LLC law says that a member does have have the legal power to sign a contract and bind the Arizona LLC on legal obligations.  Therefore the text “and Member” can only mean the signer is signing in his or her individual capacity.

Bottom Line:  If you do not want to be liable for obligations under a contract, make sure the signature line/block shows that you are signing only on behalf of the LLC.  The signature block should be one of the following:

If the LLC is member managed:

World Wide Widgets, LLC, an Arizona limited liability company

By:_______________________________
Homer Simpson, Member

If the LLC is manager managed:

World Wide Widgets, LLC, an Arizona limited liability company

By:_______________________________
Homer Simpson, Manager