Every year you are in your dental practice the more likely that you will be sued for something other than malpractice; whether it is a suit from your hygienist for a “hostile” work environment, a slip and fall by a patient, or an ADA violation from a vexatious litigant you need to make sure your personal assets are protected.
If you are a dentist and operating as a sole proprietor, you have to at least consider registering as a California Professional Corporation. There is no doubt that incorporating has lost some of its tax benefits in the past, but some many are still applicable to most dentists; however, the primary reason you may want to incorporate is for limiting your personal liability.
Limiting Liability
Generally, incorporating limits liability exposure to your corporation’s assets. As a dentist, incorporating your practice does not protect against claims of malpractice against you, but does somewhat limit exposure to malpractice against one of your associates or partners.
If you our operating a business without a corporate veil and adequate insurance, you are likely taking an unreasonable risk for something that can be very easy to fix. In order to maintain a corporate veil, corporate formalities and other procedures need to be followed but are fairly easy to follow with the right advice.
Dental Practice Law
Dental practices are susceptible to the same aspects of legal liability as any other business and it would be foolish to leave your assets protected by only thin layer of malpractice insurance. Top Floor Legal works with medical and dental practitioners to cover this basic protection.
