It may seem difficult to decide what a business should own versus what should be owned personally. Ownership and liability can be confusing at times. For instance, if a truck is used by a contractor while doing construction work but also used to pick up children from daycare, should that truck be owned by the business or the individual?
The answer is simpler than it seems. Typically the owner of a vehicle is only responsible for an accident if the owner knew or should have known about an unsafe condition of the vehicle, and that unsafe condition is what caused the accident.
Clients regularly ask me what assets new business entities should own versus what assets the clients personally should own.
For instance, presume that a general contractor drives a pickup truck while doing construction work for the general contractor’s LLC. And, that general contractor drives to church and picks up his kids from daycare with that same pickup truck. The question arises as to whether that pickup truck should be owned by the LLC or the general contractor personally.
Read more about ownership and liability in Lee’s article in the Lima News here:Â Legal-Ease: Ownership, liability are not the same
Lee R. Schroeder is an Ohio licensed attorney at Schroeder Law LLC in Putnam County. He limits his practice to business, real estate, estate planning and agriculture issues in northwest Ohio. He can be reached at Lee@LeeSchroeder.com or at 419-659-2058. This article is not intended to serve as legal advice, and specific advice should be sought from the licensed attorney of your choice based upon the specific facts and circumstances that you face.