A sole proprietorship is the simplest structure used to start a business in Florida. All you have to do as business owner is to begin conducting business activities and you are automatically considered a sole proprietorship. In Florida, as business owner of a sole proprietorship you are not required to register the business with the State of Florida as long as you conduct activities under your legal name.
However, if as business owner you operate the business under a different name than your legal name, you must register the business with the State of Florida. Sole proprietorships are easy to form, do not require formalities, do not produce a separate business entity distinct from the owner and gives the owner complete control of the business.
In Florida, general partnerships (GP) can be formed with a handshake. A partnership is an association of two or more persons known as partners who engage in a business for profit as co-owners. In simple words, you as a business owner and form a general partnership by conducting a business for profit with at least one more person.
Without going into details is important to point out that a joint venture is a type of general partnership. General partnerships are informal, easy to form, do not require any formalities or written agreements and are not required to register with the State of Florida.
However, because general partnerships are informal and involve two or more people going into business together, we recommend executing a written partnership agreement and registering with the State of Florida. While the registration and partnership agreement are optional, we recommend them in order to avoid and discourage potential conflicts and litigation with your business partners.
