Corporations
Corporations are the most complicated form of business ownership. Remember, while it is more complex, it provides safeguards that sole proprietorships and partnerships do not. Read this section to learn about the most common type of corporation, the C Corporation. You'll also learn some important information about purchasing ownership in a publicly traded corporation in the form of stocks.
Benefits of Incorporation
Limited Liability
The most important benefit of incorporation is the limited liability to which shareholders are exposed: they are not responsible for the obligations of the corporation, and they can lose no more than the amount that they have personally invested in the company. Clearly, limited liability would have been a big plus for the unfortunate individual whose business partner burned down their dry cleaning establishment. Had they been incorporated, the corporation would have been liable for the debts incurred by the fire. If the corporation didn't have enough money to pay the debt, the individual shareholders would not have been obligated to pay anything. True, they would have lost all the money that they'd invested in the business, but no more.