What is a partnership?

[Cristatus]

I understand that there are three kinds of companies: sole ownership, partnership, and company owned.

What's the difference between each of them?

As far as I understand, sole ownership is owned by a single person, and any profits are taken by this single person (after wages and other overheads)

The confusing part is: what's the difference between a partnership and a company owned restaurant? Isn't a partnership owned by multiple people, and these multiple people share the profits as agreed, however it was that they agreed on this. Company owned, on the other hand means any number of people could own the business, and the profits are split accordingly.

If it helps to illustrate, I'm wondering about this in relation to a restaurant.

 

[Brainonska511]

Partnership means that you share profits and liability with a group of people. So if the company goes under, the collectors could go after the partner's houses and such if the company didn't have enough assets to pay back the debt.

Corporation means that you are taxed twice, but the only liability is what you invest into the company. The only assets that can be losed by a corporation are those that the corporation owns (so the debt collectors can't go after the CEO of a corporation if the company goes under).

 

[Zim Hosein]

The main differences is the liabilities logic1485.

 

[Cristatus]

Cool. Gotcha. Thanks.

edit: So McDonald would be a company, and a local restaurant with multiple owners would be a partnership, could it be anything?

 

[Zim Hosein]

Originally posted by: logic1485
Cool. Gotcha. Thanks.

edit: So McDonald would be a company, and a local restaurant with multiple owners would be a partnership, could it be anything?

I was going to suggest reading this as a brief on your question, but if you live in Belgum, the law may be different logic1485.

 

[Feldenak]

Ugh...my first thought was ActiveSync

 

[Cristatus]

Originally posted by: Zim Hosein

Originally posted by: logic1485
Cool. Gotcha. Thanks.

edit: So McDonald would be a company, and a local restaurant with multiple owners would be a partnership, could it be anything?

I was going to suggest reading this as a brief on your question, but if you live in Belgium, the law may be different logic1485.

You missed the i there.

Anyways, I'm not in Belgium at the moment, I'm in England studying, but the link wouldn't have helped anyways.

 

[Zim Hosein]

Originally posted by: logic1485

Originally posted by: Zim Hosein

Originally posted by: logic1485
Cool. Gotcha. Thanks.

edit: So McDonald would be a company, and a local restaurant with multiple owners would be a partnership, could it be anything?

I was going to suggest reading this as a brief on your question, but if you live in Belgium, the law may be different logic1485.

You missed the i there.

Anyways, I'm not in Belgium at the moment, I'm in England studying, but the link wouldn't have helped anyways.

I'm not a good speeler!

Since you're in studying abroad, just go to the local library and look 'em up in a Business 101 course textbook, I'm too lazy to type it all out for you.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: logic1485
Cool. Gotcha. Thanks.

edit: So McDonald would be a company, and a local restaurant with multiple owners would be a partnership, could it be anything?

they're all companies.



there are
sole proprietorships where the owner is the company
there are partnerships where the partners share in the profit and loss of the company according to their partnership agreement or the default laws in place
there are limited partnerships where a general partner (usually some kind of limited liability company) is generally liable while the limited partners are liable only for what goes on under them
there are corporations which are owned by the shareholders and run by the directors
there are limited liability companies which are like corporations but smaller and have some special rules
there are professional corps which give limited liability to professionals (doctors, lawyers, etc)
i'm sure i'm missing some as they vary state to state.

 

[PowerMacG5]

I personally like LLC's the best. Taxed once, and you have limited liability to the amount you invested in the company (as far as I understand the letter of the law). So if someone decides to sue the business for all its worth, your house, car, wife, lively possessions, are all safe. The only thing up for grabs is the business, and business assets.

I am actually planning of forming a LLC soon, so I have looked in to it a bit.