Florida business owners have a new tool to work with. As of July 1, 2026, a new law lets you form a Protected Series LLC, which is a single company that can hold several separate businesses or investments under one roof, each walled off from the others. If you own multiple properties, run distinct lines of business, or invest across different projects, this structure is worth understanding.
One company, many compartments
Think of a Protected Series LLC as a parent company—sometimes called the “mothership”—that can create one or more “protected series” inside it. Each series can run its own business, own its own assets, take on its own debts, have its own members and managers, keep its own bank account, and even file its own tax return. Yet legally, there is only one company.
In the past, a business owner who wanted to keep three properties separate would often form three LLCs, involving three sets of filings, fees, and paperwork. A Protected Series LLC can accomplish much of that same separation within a single entity.
Two layers of protection
The structure offers two liability shields:
The first is familiar. Like any LLC, it protects owners personally from the company’s debts.
The second is what sets this entity apart. A horizontal shield separates each series from the others. If one series is sued or defaults on a loan, creditors generally cannot reach the assets of the other series or the parent company. A problem in your retail property, for example, stays contained to that series and does not put your other holdings at risk.
The catch: your records have to be airtight
That second shield is not automatic. It holds only if you keep clear, careful records that show which assets and liabilities belong to which series. The law sets a specific standard: your records must be detailed enough that a neutral outside reviewer could tell exactly what each series owns and how it got there. Sloppy bookkeeping can cause the walls between series to collapse, exposing everything the structure was meant to protect. Sound legal and accounting guidance here can make all the difference.
Is it right for you?
The Protected Series LLC can offer real efficiency and asset protection, but it is brand new in Florida, and some questions, such as how courts in other states or in bankruptcy will treat it, remain untested. Whether it fits your situation depends on your assets, your plans, and your appetite for a newer structure.
If you’re weighing how to hold multiple properties or businesses, we can help you decide whether a Protected Series LLC makes sense for you.