I am going to open a retail store and am trying to decide whether to be a sole proprietor or S-corporation. Does an S-corporation protect a sole owner from casualty and/or finanical liability?

An S-Corp offers limited liability to the owners of the corporation.  This limits the owners loss should a lawsuit be brought or debt go unsatisfied to only the investment, and not the owner's personal assets.   This is not intended to be legal advice, and is general in its nature. No attorney-client relationship exists or is formed by this information. Furthermore, this does not represent the views or opinions of LexisNexis or its affiliated companies.