First, are you going to practice as a solo practitioner now, and especially, always? Even if you start out alone, is there ANY chance you’ll take on another physician? Will the physician be offered partnership some day? Are you willing to dissolve your own practice then, to start a new business partnership later, or are you willing to set your practice’s legal structure for that possibility from the start?

If you know what corporation form you will use for your practice, you may be able to use an online incorporating service to help you with the paperwork. They can also file your application with your state. That’s how I incorporated the second practice I started. I knew it would be an LLC. My lawyer was willing to review all the forms the online service developed for me, and then I mailed them to the state to get my state (and Federal) tax ID numbers.

A practice can take one of many possible forms as a business and corporation as mentioned above. A corporation provides you some business protection if you’ve handled it correctly (that is, not mixed personal with business in purchases, payments, etc), but won’t offer much in shielding you from medical malpractice if I heard my lawyer correctly. You might get more protection with a corporation from other potential lawsuits, for instance if a patient falls on your office’s cracked front step and hurts his back. There are also tax implications, benefits and hassles, with the various business entity formats and your own personal situation may influence what legal form you ultimately chose for your practice.

Once a business entity type is chosen you will need to name your practice. I have some opinions about that decision also. Specifically, I recommend against naming your practice or business entity after yourself, even if it is followed with an “Inc.” or “P.C.” My reasons are that you are very limited in future expansion, or sale of the practice, if it is named after you. Also, using your own name for your practice makes it very easy to mix and combine business and personal records. If that happens, and you’re audited, your business entity will be disregarded by the IRS according to my accountant. Finally, putting your town or neighborhood’s name in the practice’s names similarly limits you if you ever want to expand or move your practice. So check with your experts, your lawyer and accountant, but my strong recommendation to you is for you to name your practice somewhat generically if possible.