Limited partnership
Description
An LP is a form of partnership that has two types of partners: a general partner and limited partners. There has to be at least one general partner and at least one limited partner in every LP. The general partner manages the operation of the LP. In addition, general partners are personally responsible for the liabilities of the LP. Two Advantages
Limited liability for the limited partners in a limited partnership. These partners can contribute the capital in a partnership without risking their personal assets.
There is no double taxation with limited partnerships, the partners themselves are taxed on their personal income tax returns for their share of ownership in the partnership, which usually amounts to less taxation.
Two Disadvantages
There is no limited liability for the general partner in a limited partnership. For the general partner in a limited partnership, creditors can reach their personal assets. The shares in a partnership cannot be publicly traded on the stock market which means that if you have a limited partnership you have limited growth potential.
Liability
Limited partners are shielded from personal liabilities, but they can lose their financial investment in the limited partnership. Limited partners can lose their status and be held personally responsible for business liabilities if they are found to be actively involved in the management of the business.
Income taxes
The federal income tax laws recognize a
| A general partnership is comprised of a group of two or more individuals who enter into an agreement to start a business. The partners and the business are legally the same. The partners enter into an agreement called the articles of partnership and are typically equally active in the business and the business’s management, unless otherwise stated in the partnership agreement. All profits and losses are shared by the partners in a joint business venture.
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.
* Limited partnerships have the convenience of allowing multiple investors as limited partners to assist with cash available to run the business and support improvements or other investments into the company. The burden of running the business falls on the general partner.
This protects the limited partners from the full liability that is shared by the general partners. Income Taxes – The limited partner’s profits are considered personal income and taxed as such. All profits from the limited partnership are considered personal income and taxed at their personal tax rates. Longevity / Continuity – The continuity of the business is not affected by the death or disassociation of a limited partner. An advantage for a limited partner is that the limited partner’s investment takes priority in the general partnership dissolves due to a death or disassociation of one of the general partners.
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.
Income Taxes- Taxes are paid as income tax, unless the limited partnership is classified as a corporation by the IRS for tax purposes. In order to keep from being taxed this way, you would have to stick solely to the contract as written, and keep away from operating outside of the agreement.
When splitting the profits in a general partnership you are also splitting the income tax that needs to be paid. Depending on the profits of the business this may drop you into a lower tax bracket than if a single person had filed for all of the profits. This also drops the amount of income tax paid by each person resulting in lower individual taxes paid.
INCOME TAXES – This partnership is not subject to federal income tax. All earned and lost income from this business is taxable on the individual’s tax return.
Limited liability means it does not exceed the amount invested in a partnership or limited liability company. The limited liability feature is one of the biggest advantages of investing in publicly listed companies. While a shareholder can participate wholly in the growth of a company, his or her liability is restricted to the
No, they are not always considered separate entities when dealing with substantive liabilities and duties of the partners, the limited partnership is considered an aggregate of the individual partners.
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.
Limited liability partnership (LLP): Owners are not liable for debts, obligations or other liabilities of the partnership which are a direct result of negligence, wrong acts or malpractice of an agent, employee or partner of this partnership (Bhattacharyya. A.K., 2011, p.5). However, a partner will still be liable for negligence, wrong acts or malpractice conducted by an agent, employee or partner who is under his / her direct supervision.
Due to limited liability, company creditors’ interests are not protected . Creditors need to bear the risks inherent when dealing with limited company. Shareholders are discouraged from monitoring and controlling the business due to the benefits of limited liability.
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.