Lit1 Task 310.1.2-01-06

| A general partnership allows for a pooling of capital and talent and a sharing of the risk. Additional benefits to a general partnership include additional expertise in decision making and a sharing of the workload. General partnerships are easy and inexpensive to start up.

As a hybrid of partnerships and corporations, LLC’s provide limited liability for debts and flexibility to be taxed as a partnership or corporation (Staring and Naming a Business Presentation, 2012, Slide 5). Some specific advantages include being empowered authorities in the management of the business, diversity of members, limited liability, pass-through taxation, and less paperwork (appreciated by many). A drawback of this business structure is the need for a tailored operating agreement that specifies the specific needs of the

General Partnerships are not without their disadvantages. Without being an incorporated company the owners are still subject to issues such as liability, control, and location issues.

Because the general partner holds majority of the interest and the limited partners are prohibited for participating in the control of the business.

Changing the way you structure your business can be a frightening endeavor. You have been operating as a Sole Proprietorship for quite some time now, but it appears you have outgrown that business type. You have expressed a need to scale the business as well as a concern for your own personal liability. With those concerns in mind as well as the current state of your business, I recommend restructuring the business into a Limited Liability Company. I will try and address each of your concerns individually and explain how I came to this conclusion.

Liability All liabilities are the responsibility of each partner. In the event of litigation, any creditors can go after the personal assets of each partner to recover any debt owed. But since liability is spread out between the owners, one may feel less risk is being taken. 2. Income Taxes General partnership may also benefit from pass-through taxation, meaning the partners are taxed like sole proprietors. Business income is reported on the personal tax filing while business losses can be deducted to reduce personal tax liability. The partnership itself is not subject to federal income tax. However the partnership needs to file an information return utilizing the IRS Form 1065. 3. Longevity or continuity of the organization Once the partnership agreement is fulfilled, the general partnership may dissolve. A buy/sell agreement may be included in the articles of the partnership to allow the

Convenience/Burden- Like a general partnership a limited partnership is easily formed and can enjoy pass through-taxation. It can also be easier to get financing with a limited partnership. A downfall of the limited partnership is that the death of a general partner can dissolve the partnership unless a prior agreement has been established.

A limited liability company protects each partner from personal liability for certain obligations of the company. An important difference from other partnerships is that each partner is liable for the debts and obligations of the partners. With limited liability Company, each state has its own laws governing partners for these vessels. Some states allow only certain professions, such as lawyers and accountants to form LLP. Some states only provide protection from liability for negligence claims, leaving personally responsible for other types of requests partner. For tax purposes, profits are divided equally between the partners and the partnership is not taxed separately.

Location- Similar to the General Partnership, the Limited Partnership may be moved to another state easily. A new DBA filing must be made in the

Convenience/Burden: Limited Partnerships have extra requirements placed upon them to comply with state regulatory requirements. They must maintain a registered agent to represent them in the state in which they were formed. They are also required to file an informational report with the IRS of the profits passed to the general partners.

a partners that might end or dissolve partnership. One of the main drawbacks of a

LONGEVITY/CONTINUITY –If the general partner dies or withdraws then the business is liquidated unless there was a buy/sell agreement stating otherwise. In the event that the limited partner perishes his appoint heir

Proprietorships have three advantages: they are easy and inexpensive to form, subject to few regulations, and no corporate income taxes. The disadvantages are difficult to raise capital, unlimited liability and limited life. Partnership are similar to proprietorships in that they can be stablished relatively easily and inexpensively. The partners are generally subject to unlimited personal liability, this makes it difficult for partnerships to raise large amount of capital. Corporation also have unlimited lives, and easy transfer of ownership, limited liability and ease of raising capital to operate larger businesses. The disadvantages are double taxation, the corporation’s earnings are taxed; and then when its after-tax earnings are paid out as dividends, those earnings are taxed again as personal income to the stockholders. Limited liability reduces the risks endure by investors; and other things held constant, the lower the firm’s risk, the higher its

The advantages to the sole proprietorship are single control over the business and its decisions, easy to start up, less regulations and paperwork burden that the other types of business. The disadvantages are unlimited liability for their company debts and actions. The law does not recognize any distinctions between the owner’s business assets and personal assets. Banks are very skeptical about lending to these types business because there is only one person to hold liable for repaying the debt.

Firstly, even though there are different types of partnership such as general, limited and limited liability partnership. This three different type has its advantages and disadvantages however we will be mainly focused on general partnership. One advantage of the general partnership is raising capital due to the nature of the business the partners will raise capital to start-up the business. Therefore more partners mean more capital can be put to the business, this allows the business to have more potential for growth and profitability. Another advantage is that a partnership is less complicated to form and run than a company they don’t have legal filing requirements, this means they don’t have to file accounts and documents with Companies House.