Are Your Social Media Accounts a Business Asset?

Business finances are consistently more complicated than personal finances. You have experienced this if you have ever filed individual tax returns and business tax returns. Likewise, divorce and probate cases are more complex when the couple or the decedent has an ownership interest in a business. The value of business assets fluctuates all the time, and businesses tend to have even more debts than individuals do. Legal cases involving businesses are even more difficult to resolve when there is room for debate about whether a certain asset belongs to the business or whether it is a personal asset. Therefore, if your business files for bankruptcy protection, you will need the help of an Oakland Chapter 11 bankruptcy lawyer to ensure that you get the greatest possible debt relief from your business bankruptcy case.

Social Media Accounts and Your Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Case

Thanks to social media, everyone has a personal brand these days. Some people start their social media accounts just to share mundane details of their lives with friends and strangers who have nothing better to do than spend time scrolling through social media, and they end up endorsing products in order to make a little bit of extra money. Others start by establishing a small business and market their products on their social media account, but then start posting personal content, too, as a marketing strategy. Where does your brand end and your personal life begin? You usually don’t have to think about it unless the business for which you have been marketing your products on social media files for bankruptcy.

A bankruptcy court recently ruled on a case where the owner of an energy drink business filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for the business. The applicant had three social media accounts, one each on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok, and they all had the name of the company or one of its products in their user names. Approximately 75% of the content on the social media account was directly related to the business and was not of a personal nature, 15% was personal, and 10% of posts included personal and business-related elements.

In its decision, the court outlined a test for determining whether a social media account belongs to an individual or a business. It determined that if the business owner grants access to some employees and restricts access from non-employees and from some employees, then the social media account is a business asset. If only one of these conditions applies, then the court examines a third criterion, which is whether the content posted on the social media account is of a business or personal nature. If it is mostly of a business nature, then the social media account is a business asset.

Contact the Law Office of Melanie Tavare About Filing for Business Bankruptcy

A debt relief lawyer can help you file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy for your business. Contact the Law Office of Melanie Tavare in Oakland, California, or call (510)255-4646 for a free case evaluation.