incorporate to protect assets?

[gstander1]

One more thing on the LP idea. It may not be perfect but it is better than nothing. I am not worried about bankruptcy protection - mainly just some crazy lawsuit. While I have a general liability policy as well, I always wonder if that really matters. After all, these days, juries routinely award gigantic settlements which could easily exceed any general liability policy I might own.

If you are going to do it, do it sooner than later! Also, you don't really need a 'family' to do this. You can use an S corp as a partner. In my case, both myself and my wife are limited partners but an S corp is the General partner. I could however, have another S corp as a limited partner if I wanted. It is a hassle around tax time however...

Greg

 

[Martha]

While I have a general liability policy as well, I always wonder if that really matters. After all, these days, juries routinely award gigantic settlements which could easily exceed any general liability policy I might own.

Greg

Greg, as TH said in another thread, an umbrella policy, given its relatively low cost, is just about a necessity for anyone with more than a nominal amount of assets to protect.

As far as so called out of control jurys, don't believe everything you read on the size of jury verdicts and remember most suits settle.

 

[Michael Moore]

One more thing on the LP idea.  It may not be perfect but it is better than nothing.  I am not worried about bankruptcy protection - mainly just some crazy lawsuit.  While I have a general liability policy as well, I always wonder if that really matters.  After all, these days, juries routinely award gigantic settlements which could easily exceed any general liability policy I might own.

Greg, FWIW, I did some looking into very small business liability (I was thinking of making a few custom racing motorcycle frames for sale).  The liability exposure was too scary for my taste.  But one of the racer/attorney's I talked to informally told me that the first thing he does (and suspects that most attorneys do) when someone comes to him is look around and see if anyone potentially involved in the situation has some money.  If there isn't enough money to both pay him for his time AND recover enough to make it worth while for the client, he'll pass on the case.

A number of people remarked to me that it looked like you might be better off to have limited assets than to have liability insurance that gave the plaintiff something to go after.

That's probably worth less than most free advice, but I thought I'd pass that along as something you might consider and/or ask about if talking to a knowledgable person on the issue.

cheers,
Michael