General Partnerships
A general partnership is one in which all partners share in the management and liability of the company. The definition of the partnership is that all partners share equally; however, partners can have varying percentages of duties and liabilities. Partnerships can be formed on the basis of an oral agreement, but for your protection you will probably want to document the partnership agreement. If partners do not share equally in management responsibilities and liability, you will definitely need a written agreement to that effect. If there are more than two partners, the majority of partners must agree to management decisions regarding your business operations.