A corporate lawyer should be on the staff of every large business. Attorneys, corporate trained and experienced, are invaluable to your company. Do you really need a full-time attorney? Corporate law is very complex so although you might not want his full-time assistance you might want to have access to him whenever you are in need. This site can help you find lawyers, Corporate lawyers that will help your company succeed.
A corporation is an artificial legal entity, typically chartered by a state, generally formed to operate a business. Once chartered, the corporation is completely separate from its owners, has its own life, and is liable for its own debts and must pay its own taxes.
All states have a General Corporation Law or Business Corporation Law that allows virtually anyone to obtain a charter to conduct most businesses. (Certain types of corporations, such as banks, insurance companies, and public utilities often have to be formed either by act of the legislature or under special laws. This is a throwback to the days when all corporations were formed by a charter issued by the King of England, and later by a special act of a state legislature.)
The actual formal mechanics of creating a corporation is known as "incorporation." The process involves completing and filing a "Certificate of Incorporation" or "Articles of Incorporation" and paying a filing fee. Each state has its own set of laws governing the process of incorporating.
Corporate existence starts when the articles of incorporation are filed with the state office that handles incorporations (e.g., usually the Secretary of State or Corporation Commissioner), along with the required filing fees. Accelerated incorporations or same day filings are available in some states.
In addition to the standard "corporation" two relatively new forms of entities known as a "Limited Liability Company" and "Limited Liability Partnership" offer many of the same benefits as the traditional corporation, plus some unique advantages.
The legal structure of your business is extremely important. State law enables you to create a legal entity - a separate "identity" from your own person - under which you can transact business, without the risk of exposing your assets to any personal liability that might arise out of your business affairs.
Sole proprietorship affords the least amount of asset protection. Anything you or your employees do in a business that is a sole proprietorship exposes your assets.
In terms of asset protection, being a general partner can be even worse. Anything that one partner, or any employee, does in the course of the business affects all of the partners, because each partner of a general partnership is personally responsible for all obligations of the partnership.
To avoid risking personal liability for activities arising out of business, you need to consider other available forms of business organization which provide greater protection. Changing the form of business ownership will involve some legal work, documentation, filings with various government agencies, and have some tax impacts. They should be discussed with an attorney.
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