Q:

Subject: c vs. s corp, llc, and other other choices I might have....

Hello,

 

I ran across a page from your webiste on the s corp vs. c corp that was very informative and quite good.  I am knowledgeable in these areas and have been talking to lawyers, accountants, etc... about the best way to structure my businesses.... for tax reasons... but also quite importantly... liability reasons..... and want to set up a structure that would protect my personal assests from the company's in the event of any lawsuits etc...  The business I am in... and most concerned with is the fitness business(gym ownership).  Questions arise when talking about "piercing" the corporate veil??  Any articles/opinions relating to that....?

 

I intend to look at your websites... blog etc.. in more detail soon.

 

Thanks,

A:

You are correct that maintaining the proper separation between your personal and corporate things is very important in order to protect against piercing the corporate shield by either IRS or overly aggressive attorneys.  Many small corporate owners do jeopardize this protection by commingling their personal and corporate records and assets.  This gives IRS and attorneys a perfect opportunity to ignore the corporate shield and accuse the owners of operating as if the corp is merely an alter ego of themselves.

I'm not an attorney; so I don't write a lot about this.  I'm sure there are plenty of blogs by attorneys out there that will provide a variety of opinions on this subject.  However, the ultimate decisions as to whether you are conducting yourself properly in this regard should be determined with the assistance of your personal legal counsel, with input from your personal professional tax advisor.

Good luck.

Kerry Kerstetter

- posted by Kerry M. Kerstetter, MBA~CPA~ATP~ATA @ 8/06/2007 10:53:00 AM Send this post: