Corporation being sued, being sued personally

[Kevin Donahue]

What is the name of your state? FL
My corporation went bankrupt but is being sued. My insurance limits are 5K and they want about 25K. When they found out that my corporation went bankrupt they said they were going to file on me personally. What can I do to defend myself? How would I go about using my corporation for personal protection?What is the name of your state?

 

[Rexlan]

The mob may help you out on protection but not likely the Court will. You just had a paper that said corporation xyz and you think it is OK to hide from creditors as a result? Get real.

If you were the CEO, and whole wad of wax they will probably get you.

5K insurance is a joke ... you can't even buy a decent lawn tractor for that. 1-2 million is a minimum for a real entity.

You best get an attorney ASAP ... and you can't represent yourself as a Corp.

 

[Kevin Donahue]

First of all it's not a creditor it's a customer that is suing me because she has a friend as an attorney and all her fees are free. Second the 5K in the maxium for damages during cleaning, we had a 5 million dollar policy. Third the question was for people who know what their talking about, such as, can the president of a corporation be sued personally for damages that the business causes. BTW, I've never hide behind my corporation, if we screwed up we took care of it. This case is 100% frauds, everyone that has looked at the "damaged" furniture said there's not 1 thing wrong, but it's still a 50/50 coin flip in the courts no matter what.

 

[JustAPal00]

Wait till they file. Remember anyone can sue anyone for anything. If it's a simple case of some furnature you were cleaning that may or may not have been damaged, then you have nothing to worry about, that is why you form a corp. If you damaged it on purpose, then it would be a different matter.

 

[Zigner]

Fcan the president of a corporation be sued personally for damages that the business causes.

That answer is: It depends on many factors.

 

[HomeGuru]

That answer is: It depends on many factors.

**A: I say the answer is yes.

 

[Zigner]

**A: I say the answer is yes.

In this case, I agree. It's obvious that the OP has no clue what needed to be done to avoid being responsible for corporate liabilities.

However, with a properly formed (and operated) corporation, then it would likely be different.

 

[Kevin Donahue]

Just so you know, my corporation was set up by an attorney and has been run by him (making sure that all our paper work was in order, our minutes, elections, etc..) My REAL question was, once the lawsuit against me is filed what should my response be? These same people are also trying to sue my former manager for the same thing.
BTW, when I say they are suing me for no reason I mean it, the furniture was inspected by 12 different people, ZERO have found anything wrong. But she's having her house remoldeled and somebody has to pay for it. I know, just fight it in court, but what a business goes against a homeowner it's a flip of the coin no matter how you slice it.

 

[Zigner]

Just so you know, my corporation was set up by an attorney and has been run by him (making sure that all our paper work was in order, our minutes, elections, etc..) My REAL question was, once the lawsuit against me is filed what should my response be? These same people are also trying to sue my former manager for the same thing.
BTW, when I say they are suing me for no reason I mean it, the furniture was inspected by 12 different people, ZERO have found anything wrong. But she's having her house remoldeled and somebody has to pay for it. I know, just fight it in court, but what a business goes against a homeowner it's a flip of the coin no matter how you slice it.

So, tell me, how many stock holders do you actually have? Do you REALLY hold annual meetings (not just on paper).
Again, you wouldn't be asking this question if you knew what you were doing. And, since you already have an attorney, why aren't you asking HIM?

 

[Kevin Donahue]

Yes we held meetings, took minutes, elected board members, everything to keep the corporation legal. As for why I don't ask my lawyer? Well I would except he's out of town until tuesday and I just found out today that the jerk O'S are trying to get around the corporation to sue me personally! Come tuesday I will have that talk with him you can bet. Bottom line, if they can get around the corporation so quickly than a corporation has no meaning, what kind of protecting can you have.
For the record, we NEVER screwed anyone, EVER!! We paid our bills, took care of our customers and always took responsibility for any problems that we caused or MAY HAVE caused. This is different because there's NO damage and she has a rich history of making money from suing businesses for anything she can think of.
BTW, being right doesn't always work in court, a jury can find againt a corporation for no other reason than they don't like a business over a customer.

 

[Rexlan]

So you are still down to your original issue (protection from personal liability) and have expanded on it as well:

How would I go about using my corporation for personal protection **************..... Bottom line, if they can get around the corporation so quickly than a corporation has no meaning, what kind of protecting can you have.

You were badly underinsured, perhaps because you felt you had no liability, and that is the insurance policy limit you saw fit to purchase ... your 5M policy is not worth squat if the damage limit is 5K. That limit could has been 50K if you had purchased that coverage.

You are just speculating instead of trying to resolve the matter. You have offered no factual information, just your opinion and that won't fly in Court.

Third the question was for people who know what their talking about, such as, can the president of a corporation be sued personally for damages that the business causes.

I, and several others, have given you that answer but it is not the one you wanted so it went over your head ... lol. It sounds like you formed a corp. for personal protection, and now you are squealing like a stuck pig because it may not work. That is not why you form a corp. and one of the early lessons in business. Perhaps a factor in your failure at it.