If I name a business with more than one owner in a small claims suit and fwin, can I collect from either one?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
If I name a business with more than one owner in a small claims suit and fwin, can I collect from either one?
The business is a DBA. The contractor’s license lists one person as owner and the dba record lists another person as owner. The business has 2 locations. The business licenses for these 2 locations list 2 other people as owners. One admitted in writing in email that they are all partners.
Asked on June 6, 2012 under Business Law, California
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
If a business is a partnership and you are suing the business, you can name all the partners and potentially collect from any or all of them. (In total, you cannot recover more than the amount of your damages or claim, no matter how many people are responsible for paying it.) It is possible that one or another might have a defense to liability--but if so, let them put that defense forward; you should name everyone who may be liable, then let those defendants see if they have grounds to avoid liability.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.