Partnership

Many people are understandably reluctant to enter into partnerships because of unlimited liability. Individuals with substantial assets, for example, have a lot to lose if they get sued for a partnership obligation (and when people sue, they tend to start with the richest partner). To overcome this defect of partnerships, the law permits a limited partnership, which has two types of partners: a single general partner who runs the business and is responsible for its liabilities, and any number of limited partners who have limited involvement in the business and whose losses are limited to the amount of their investment.