1. Big Burping Burgers is a successful and well known fast-food...

1. Big Burping Burgers is a successful and well known fast-food operation run by Rory Rib. Rory started as a sole proprietor, and he still runs the business that way because it gives him total control and oversight of the business. The store is always busy. It is open long hours, has many employees, and a broad customer base. People come from out of town for one of Rory's burgers. Rory is also innovative, and has developed burgers made with products other than beef that appeal to customers across cultural lines. Rory is thinking about expanding his business.

a. With respect to the form or method of carrying on business Rory is using, should he make any changes in his method of carrying on business before he considers expansion options?

b. For expansion, what are the pros and cons of franchising Big Burping Burgers?

c. What other form(s) or method(s) of carrying on business should he consider for expansion that may be helpful not only in raising capital for expansion but at the same time protect him from unlimited liability?

2. Well, it happened. Big Burping Burger is in trouble. At one of its new branches, an employee mixed a batch of burgers that contained bacteria. The burgers were not cooked enough to kill off the organisms. As a result, 40 people became gravely ill, and four of them died. The municipal health unit shut the location down. The business is going to be fined a large sum of money, and there are civil suits by victims whose combined claims are in excess of $100 million. What will the financial consequences be for Rory if the business were:

a. a franchise.

b. a sole proprietorship

c. a partnership

d. a corporation (limited liability company)