A sole proprietorship essentially means a person does business
in his or her own name and there is only one owner. Since the
business is really just an extension of that person and not a
new entity (like a corporation) any business debts are also personal
debts. If the business were to get a judgment filed against it,
it would be a problem for the owner. As a sole proprietorship
is not a corporation, it does not pay corporate taxes, but rather
the person who organized the business pays personal income taxes
on the profits made, making accounting much simpler. A sole proprietorship
need not worry about double taxation like a corporation would
have to.
A business organized as a sole proprietorship will likely have
a hard time raising capital since shares of the business cannot
be sold, and there is a smaller sense of legitimacy relative
to a business organized as a corporation or limited liability
company. Hiring employees may also be difficult. This form of
business will have unlimited liability, therefore, if the business
is sued, it is the proprietor's problem.
Most sole proprietors will register a trade
name or "Doing
Business As" with their jurisdiction. This allows the proprietor
to do business with a name other than their legal name and also
allows them to open a business account with banking institutions.
However, the owner remains personally liable for all business
debts.