Topic: The Family Business

One issue that I have with the selected reading is that there is a limited coverage of entity selection. The text tends to present Partnerships, Corporations, and Limited Liability Companies as being essentially equal forms. That is not true. Each entity has specific uses, but for the vast majority of small business would benefit from a limited liability company set up, and then partnership and corporation being used for specific reasons.

To demonstrate this, I have two activities that will show you how partnerships are actually used, and questions to identify why LLCs are generally more acceptable to small business.

Assignment Instructions and Materials:

1. Go to Bing.com and enter the search term "partnerships." I want you to then select the "NEWS" tab below the search bar and scroll through the first 50 articles. Notice who is entering into the partnerships, who or what is entering into the partnership, and what do you notice about the entities? I want you to choose one article, read it, and answer these questions:

2. Who or what is entering into the partnerships?

3. What is the basis of the partnership? Is it profit oriented or expense oriented? How can you tell from the article?

4. How long is the duration of the proposed partnership? If it is not limited in time, is it limited in scope? What factors limit the partnership?

5. Reflecting on the 50 articles that you viewed what was common among the vast majorities of the partners?

In addition to Chapter 9 in the text, read, watch, and review the resources provided below:

Why Business Partnerships Fail (thebalancesmb.com)Links to an external site.

Benefits of Being a Limited Company Over Partnership (upcounsel.com)Links to an external site.

After reviewing the provided resources, in a forum post, respond to the following questions(s) and/or prompt(s):

What are the three biggest benefits of operating an LLC over a partnership?

What are the three biggest pitfalls of a partnership, and how are they resolved by using an LLC?