A joint petition is the filing of a single petition by an individual and the individual’s spouse. Only persons that are married on the date they file may file a joint petition. Unmarried persons, corporations and partnerships must file a separate case. If you are an individual and have a business which is not a partnership, corporation or business trust, you should list the business as a d.b.a. (doing business as) on your petition. However, yours will not be considered a joint petition because the business is not an independently recognized legal entity.