Florida Benefit Corporation Law

How Fresh Legal Perspective Can Help You

Do you desire for your business to make an impact larger than just producing profits for shareholders?

In the summer of 2014, the state of Florida recognized that the culture of business was shifting towards a greater sense of social responsibility to our communities. To empower corporations to pursue their passion of fulfilling and contributing to community needs, Florida created the structure for Benefit Corporations and Social Purpose Corporations. In addition to operating for profits, the owners of benefit and social purpose organizations choose a public benefit or social purpose to drive their decision-making and business operations. Boards of Directors of these types of corporations have a shared duty to operate profitably and to accomplish its community benefit and social purpose.

Fresh Legal Perspective can help you understand these new business structures and explain the importance of balancing philanthropy and corporate governance. With our experience in both nonprofit law and corporate law, we can provide you with the legal counsel you need to operate properly as a benefit or social purpose corporation.

Schedule a consultation with an experienced business attorney to receive the help you need to begin your new business or to register your existing business as a benefit or social purpose corporation.

What is the difference between a Benefit Corporation and a Social Purpose Corporation?

A Benefit Corporation adopts the broad mission to operate for “general public benefit” and directors and officers must make decisions with general societal concerns in mind – such as the effect that their actions or inactions will have on the public in general and the local and global environment, and whether the action or inaction will assist in the corporation accomplishing its general public benefit – rather than focusing on any one single public benefit.

A Social Purpose Corporation seeks to create a “public benefit” and usually chooses one or more specific public benefits to pursue. Directors and officers of social purpose corporations can make decisions based solely on those specifically chosen public benefits, if desired.

This portion of the site is for informational purposes only. The content is not legal advice.