Sole Traders
General Partnerships
Limited Patnerships
Limited Liability Partnerships
Companies
Key Legislation
General Law of Contract
Partnership Act 1980
Limited Partnerships Act 1907
Limited Liabity Partnerships Act 2000
Companies Act 2006
Liability
Unlimited Liability
Each Partner jointly and severally liable
Limiteed Liabiliy for limited partners and unlimted liability for general partner
Limited to the amount tas they have agreed
Depending on the type of company
Separate Legal Personality
No
No
No
Yes
YEs
Taxation
Forms of business organisations
Sole Traders
A Sole Trader is a one-person business where an individual makes a contract in his own name. There is no legal filing requirements
Partnerships
Partnerships are governed by the Partnership Act 1890 unless excluded by the partnership agreement. A partnership is defined in s.1 as ‘the relationship which subsists between persons carrying on a business in common with a view of profit.’
Comppanies
Companies are governed by the Companies Act 2006. A company can be limited or unlimited, limited by share or by guarantee.
The corporate veil
On incorporation, following a prescribed registration process, a company becomes a separate legal entity, which is distinct and separate from its shareholders.
The procedures for setting up a private company
S.7 of the CA 2006 states that one or more persons can incoproate, provided that irt is for a lawful purpose. The following documents must be sent to Companies House: a memorandum of association, the article of association signed by the subscriber(s), a statement naming the company’s first director and company secretary , and a formal declaration that the terms of the statue have been complied with.
Memorandum of association
A memorandum is a short piece of document which simply records the identy of the origanl fouders of the company and indicates how many shares they took on