Full question:
I have a judgment naming a company and the person who owned and was president of the company. The individual was not named in the lawsuit but is named on the judgment. The corporation no longer exists. Can I enforce the judgment against the person?
- Category: Corporations
- Subcategory: Corporate Dissolution
- Date:
- State: Florida
Answer:
In some situations, you can hold a person liable under an alter ego theory, which allows the court to "pierce the corporate veil." This means that if there is no real separation between the individual and the corporation, the individual can be held responsible for the corporation's debts. Generally, a person’s personal assets are protected from a corporation’s liabilities, unless they acted outside their authority, breached a fiduciary duty, or if the corporation and individual are not truly separate. Courts may disregard the corporate entity and hold shareholders, officers, or directors personally liable if they engaged in fraud, illegality, or misrepresentation. Additionally, courts may pierce the corporate veil if the corporation did not follow incorporation requirements, if corporate funds were mixed with personal assets, or if the corporation was undercapitalized.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.