A company, abbreviated as co., is a legal entity representing an association of people, whether natural, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific, declared goals. Companies take various forms, such as:
A company can be created as a legal person so that the company itself has limited liability as members perform or fail to discharge their duty according to the publicly declared incorporation, or published policy. When a company closes, it may need to be liquidated to avoid further legal obligations.
Companies may associate and collectively register themselves as new companies; the resulting entities are often known as corporate groups.
A company can be defined as an "artificial person", invisible, intangible, created by or under law,[1] with a discrete legal personality, perpetual succession, and a common seal. Except for some senior positions, companies remain unaffected by the death, insanity, or insolvency of an individual member.
Etymology
The English word, company, has its origins in the Old French term compagnie (first recorded in 1150), meaning a "society, friendship, intimacy; body of soldiers",[2] which came from the Late Latin word companio ("one who eats bread with you"), first attested in the Salic law (c. AD 500) as a calque of the Germanic expression gahlaibo (literally, "with bread"), related to Old High Germangaleipo ("companion") and to Gothicgahlaiba ("messmate").
Semantics and usage
By 1303, the word company referred to trade guilds.[3] Usage of the term company to mean "business association" was first recorded in 1553,[4] and the abbreviation "co." dates from 1769.[5][6]
Companies around the world
The examples and perspective in this section deal primarily with Western culture and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this section, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new section, as appropriate.(June 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)
In English law and in legal jurisdictions based upon it, a company is a body corporate or corporation company registered under the Companies Acts or under similar legislation.[7] Common forms include:
Public limited companies - companies, usually large, which are permitted to (but do not have to) offer their shares to the public, for example on a stock exchange
In the United Kingdom, a partnership is not legally a company, but may sometimes be referred to (informally) as a "company". It may be referred to as a "firm".
In the United States, a company is not necessarily a corporation. For example, a company may be a "corporation, partnership, association, joint-stock company, trust, fund, or organized group of persons, whether incorporated or not, and (in an official capacity) any receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, or similar official, or liquidating agent, for any of the foregoing".[8][9]
A company limited by guarantee (CLG): Commonly used where companies are formed for non-commercial purposes, such as clubs or charities. The members guarantee the payment of certain (usually nominal) amounts if the company goes into insolvent liquidation, but otherwise, they have no economic rights in relation to the company. This type of company is common in England. A company limited by guarantee may be with or without having share capital.
A company limited by shares: The most common form of the company used for business ventures. Specifically, a limited company is a "company in which the liability of each shareholder is limited to the amount individually invested" with corporations being "the most common example of a limited company".[9] This type of company is common in England and many English-speaking countries. A company limited by shares may be a publicly traded company or a privately held company.
A company limited by guarantee with a share capital: A hybrid entity, usually used where the company is formed for non-commercial purposes, but the activities of the company are partly funded by investors who expect a return. This type of company may no longer be formed in the UK, although provisions still exist in law for them to exist.[7]
A limited liability company: "A company—statutorily authorized in certain states—that is characterized by limited liability, management by members or managers, and limitations on ownership transfer", i.e., L.L.C.[9] LLC structure has been called "hybrid" in that it "combines the characteristics of a corporation and of a partnership or sole proprietorship". Like a corporation, it has limited liability for members of the company, and like a partnership it has "flow-through taxation to the members" and must be "dissolved upon the death or bankruptcy of a member".[10]
An unlimited company with or without a share capital: A hybrid entity, a company where the liability of members or shareholders for the debts (if any) of the company are not limited. In this case, the doctrine of a veil of incorporation does not apply.[citation needed]
Less common types of companies are:
Companies formed by letters patent: Most corporations by letters patent are corporations sole and not companies as the term is commonly understood today.
Royal charter corporations: In middle-ages Europe, before the passing of modern companies legislation, these were the only types of companies.[citation needed] Now they are relatively rare, except for very old companies that still survive (particularly many British banks), or modern societies that fulfill a quasi-regulatory function (for example, the Bank of England is a corporation formed by a modern charter).
Statutory companies: Relatively rare today, certain companies have been formed by a private statute passed in the relevant jurisdiction.
When "Ltd" is placed after the company's name, it signifies a limited company, and "PLC" (public limited company) indicates that its shares are widely held.[11]
In the legal context, the owners of a company are normally referred to as the "members". In a company limited or unlimited by shares (formed or incorporated with a share capital), this will be the shareholders. In a company limited by guarantee, this will be the guarantors. Some offshore jurisdictions have created special forms of offshore company in a bid to attract business for their jurisdictions. Examples include segregated portfolio companies and restricted purpose companies.
However, there are many sub-categories of company types that can be formed in various jurisdictions in the world.
Companies are also sometimes distinguished for legal and regulatory purposes between public companies and private companies. Public companies are companies whose shares can be publicly traded, often (although not always) on a stock exchange which imposes listing requirements/Listing Rules as to the issued shares, the trading of shares and future issue of shares to help bolster the reputation of the exchange or particular market of an exchange. Private companies do not have publicly traded shares, and often contain restrictions on transfers of shares. In some jurisdictions, private companies have maximum numbers of shareholders.
A parent company is a company that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors; the second company being deemed a subsidiary of the parent company. The definition of a parent company differs by jurisdiction, with the definition normally being defined by way of laws dealing with companies in that jurisdiction.
^ Compare a definition of a corporation: "Perhaps the best definition of a corporation was given by Chief Justice John Marshall in a famous Supreme Court decision in 1819. A corporation, he said, 'is an artificial person, invisible, intangible, and existing only in contemplation of the law.' In other words, a corporation [...] is an artificial person, created by law, with most of the legal rights of a real person." Pride, William M.; Hughes, Robert J.; Kapoor, Jack R. (1985). "4: Choosing a form of business ownership". Business. CengageNOW Series (10 ed.). Mason, Ohio: Cengage Learning (published 2009). p. 116. ISBN9780324829556. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
^ Compare: Harper, Douglas. "company". Online Etymology Dictionary. - '[...] the word having been used in reference to trade guilds from late 14c.'
^ Compare: Harper, Douglas. "company". Online Etymology Dictionary. - 'From late 14c. as "a number of persons united to perform or carry out anything jointly," which developed a commercial sense of "business association" by 1550s, the word having been used in reference to trade guilds from late 14c.'
^ Compare: "co". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.) - "1759 Compl. Let.-writer (ed. 6) London: Printed for Stanley Crowder, and Co."
^ Compare: Harper, Douglas. "co". Online Etymology Dictionary. - 'by 1670's as an abbreviation of company in the business sense, indicating the partners in the firm whose names do not appear in its name. Hence and co. to indicate "the rest" of any group (1757)'.
^ ab"Companies Act 2006". www.legislation.gov.uk. from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
^Garner, Bryan A., ed. (1891). "company". Black's Law Dictionary. Black's Law, 9th Edition. Vol. 1 (9 ed.). St. Paul, Minnesota: West Publishing, Inc (published 2009). p. 318. ISBN9780314199492. Retrieved April 20, 2019. 2. A corporation, partnership, association, joint-stock company, trust, fund, or organized group of persons, whether incorporated or not, and (in an official capacity) any receiver, trustee in bankruptcy, or similar official, or liquidating agent, for any of the foregoing. Investment Company Act 2(a)(8)(15 USCA 80a-2(a)(8)).
^ abcBlack's Law and lee Dictionary. Second Pocket Edition. Bryan A. Garner, editor. West. 2001.
^root. "Limited Liability Company (LLC) Definition - Investopedia". Investopedia. from the original on November 27, 2012. Retrieved November 14, 2012.
^"BBC Bitesize - GCSE Business - Forms of business ownership - Revision 3". BBC Bitesize. from the original on September 1, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
Look up Company in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Companies.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Companies.
. Government Information Library. University of Colorado at Boulder. Archived from the original on June 12, 2009. Retrieved August 5, 2009.
"Get Information About a Company". Gov.UK.
April 19, 2023
company, other, uses, disambiguation, firm, redirects, here, other, uses, firm, disambiguation, company, abbreviated, legal, entity, representing, association, people, whether, natural, legal, mixture, both, with, specific, objective, members, share, common, p. For other uses see Company disambiguation Firm redirects here For other uses see Firm disambiguation A company abbreviated as co is a legal entity representing an association of people whether natural legal or a mixture of both with a specific objective Company members share a common purpose and unite to achieve specific declared goals Companies take various forms such as voluntary associations which may include nonprofit organizations business entities whose aim is generating profit financial entities and banks programs or educational institutionsA modern corporate office building in Munster North Rhine Westphalia Germany An office building of Nokia Corporation in Hervanta Tampere Finland A company can be created as a legal person so that the company itself has limited liability as members perform or fail to discharge their duty according to the publicly declared incorporation or published policy When a company closes it may need to be liquidated to avoid further legal obligations Companies may associate and collectively register themselves as new companies the resulting entities are often known as corporate groups Contents 1 Meanings and definitions 1 1 Etymology 1 2 Semantics and usage 2 Companies around the world 2 1 China 2 2 United Kingdom 2 3 United States 3 Types 4 See also 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External linksMeanings and definitions EditA company can be defined as an artificial person invisible intangible created by or under law 1 with a discrete legal personality perpetual succession and a common seal Except for some senior positions companies remain unaffected by the death insanity or insolvency of an individual member Etymology Edit The English word company has its origins in the Old French term compagnie first recorded in 1150 meaning a society friendship intimacy body of soldiers 2 which came from the Late Latin word companio one who eats bread with you first attested in the Salic law c AD 500 as a calque of the Germanic expression gahlaibo literally with bread related to Old High German galeipo companion and to Gothic gahlaiba messmate Semantics and usage Edit By 1303 the word company referred to trade guilds 3 Usage of the term company to mean business association was first recorded in 1553 4 and the abbreviation co dates from 1769 5 6 Companies around the world EditThe examples and perspective in this section deal primarily with Western culture and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject You may improve this section discuss the issue on the talk page or create a new section as appropriate June 2019 Learn how and when to remove this template message China Edit In China companies are often government run or government supported Other companies may be foreign companies or export based corporations However many of these companies are government regulated citation needed United Kingdom Edit See also List of companies of the United Kingdom In English law and in legal jurisdictions based upon it a company is a body corporate or corporation company registered under the Companies Acts or under similar legislation 7 Common forms include Private companies limited by guarantee Community interest company Charitable incorporated organisation Private companies limited by shares the most common form of company Public limited companies companies usually large which are permitted to but do not have to offer their shares to the public for example on a stock exchangeIn the United Kingdom a partnership is not legally a company but may sometimes be referred to informally as a company It may be referred to as a firm United States Edit See also List of companies of the United States by state In the United States a company is not necessarily a corporation For example a company may be a corporation partnership association joint stock company trust fund or organized group of persons whether incorporated or not and in an official capacity any receiver trustee in bankruptcy or similar official or liquidating agent for any of the foregoing 8 9 Types EditFor a country by country listing see types of business entity See also Business Forms A company limited by guarantee CLG Commonly used where companies are formed for non commercial purposes such as clubs or charities The members guarantee the payment of certain usually nominal amounts if the company goes into insolvent liquidation but otherwise they have no economic rights in relation to the company This type of company is common in England A company limited by guarantee may be with or without having share capital A company limited by shares The most common form of the company used for business ventures Specifically a limited company is a company in which the liability of each shareholder is limited to the amount individually invested with corporations being the most common example of a limited company 9 This type of company is common in England and many English speaking countries A company limited by shares may be a publicly traded company or a privately held company A company limited by guarantee with a share capital A hybrid entity usually used where the company is formed for non commercial purposes but the activities of the company are partly funded by investors who expect a return This type of company may no longer be formed in the UK although provisions still exist in law for them to exist 7 A limited liability company A company statutorily authorized in certain states that is characterized by limited liability management by members or managers and limitations on ownership transfer i e L L C 9 LLC structure has been called hybrid in that it combines the characteristics of a corporation and of a partnership or sole proprietorship Like a corporation it has limited liability for members of the company and like a partnership it has flow through taxation to the members and must be dissolved upon the death or bankruptcy of a member 10 An unlimited company with or without a share capital A hybrid entity a company where the liability of members or shareholders for the debts if any of the company are not limited In this case the doctrine of a veil of incorporation does not apply citation needed Less common types of companies are Companies formed by letters patent Most corporations by letters patent are corporations sole and not companies as the term is commonly understood today Royal charter corporations In middle ages Europe before the passing of modern companies legislation these were the only types of companies citation needed Now they are relatively rare except for very old companies that still survive particularly many British banks or modern societies that fulfill a quasi regulatory function for example the Bank of England is a corporation formed by a modern charter Statutory companies Relatively rare today certain companies have been formed by a private statute passed in the relevant jurisdiction When Ltd is placed after the company s name it signifies a limited company and PLC public limited company indicates that its shares are widely held 11 In the legal context the owners of a company are normally referred to as the members In a company limited or unlimited by shares formed or incorporated with a share capital this will be the shareholders In a company limited by guarantee this will be the guarantors Some offshore jurisdictions have created special forms of offshore company in a bid to attract business for their jurisdictions Examples include segregated portfolio companies and restricted purpose companies However there are many sub categories of company types that can be formed in various jurisdictions in the world Companies are also sometimes distinguished for legal and regulatory purposes between public companies and private companies Public companies are companies whose shares can be publicly traded often although not always on a stock exchange which imposes listing requirements Listing Rules as to the issued shares the trading of shares and future issue of shares to help bolster the reputation of the exchange or particular market of an exchange Private companies do not have publicly traded shares and often contain restrictions on transfers of shares In some jurisdictions private companies have maximum numbers of shareholders A parent company is a company that owns enough voting stock in another firm to control management and operations by influencing or electing its board of directors the second company being deemed a subsidiary of the parent company The definition of a parent company differs by jurisdiction with the definition normally being defined by way of laws dealing with companies in that jurisdiction See also Edit Business and economics portal Companies portalCorporate personhood List of company registers List of largest employers Lists of companies Stewardship Types of business entityReferences Edit Compare a definition of a corporation Perhaps the best definition of a corporation was given by Chief Justice John Marshall in a famous Supreme Court decision in 1819 A corporation he said is an artificial person invisible intangible and existing only in contemplation of the law In other words a corporation is an artificial person created by law with most of the legal rights of a real person Pride William M Hughes Robert J Kapoor Jack R 1985 4 Choosing a form of business ownership Business CengageNOW Series 10 ed Mason Ohio Cengage Learning published 2009 p 116 ISBN 9780324829556 Retrieved April 20 2019 12th century Harper Douglas company Online Etymology Dictionary Compare Harper Douglas company Online Etymology Dictionary the word having been used in reference to trade guilds from late 14c Compare Harper Douglas company Online Etymology Dictionary From late 14c as a number of persons united to perform or carry out anything jointly which developed a commercial sense of business association by 1550s the word having been used in reference to trade guilds from late 14c Compare co Oxford English Dictionary Online ed Oxford University Press Subscription or participating institution membership required 1759 Compl Let writer ed 6 London Printed for Stanley Crowder and Co Compare Harper Douglas co Online Etymology Dictionary by 1670 s as an abbreviation of company in the business sense indicating the partners in the firm whose names do not appear in its name Hence and co to indicate the rest of any group 1757 a b Companies Act 2006 www legislation gov uk Archived from the original on April 10 2015 Retrieved March 15 2020 Garner Bryan A ed 1891 company Black s Law Dictionary Black s Law 9th Edition Vol 1 9 ed St Paul Minnesota West Publishing Inc published 2009 p 318 ISBN 9780314199492 Retrieved April 20 2019 2 A corporation partnership association joint stock company trust fund or organized group of persons whether incorporated or not and in an official capacity any receiver trustee in bankruptcy or similar official or liquidating agent for any of the foregoing Investment Company Act 2 a 8 15 USCA 80a 2 a 8 a b c Black s Law and lee Dictionary Second Pocket Edition Bryan A Garner editor West 2001 root Limited Liability Company LLC Definition Investopedia Investopedia Archived from the original on November 27 2012 Retrieved November 14 2012 BBC Bitesize GCSE Business Forms of business ownership Revision 3 BBC Bitesize Archived from the original on September 1 2018 Retrieved August 31 2018 Further reading EditAlan Dignam and John Lowry Company Law Oxford Oxford University Press 2020 ISBN 978 0 19 928936 3 John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge The Company A Short History of a Revolutionary Idea New York Modern Library 2003 Company Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 6 11th ed 1911 pp 795 803 External links Edit Look up Company in Wiktionary the free dictionary Wikiquote has quotations related to Companies Wikimedia Commons has media related to Companies Labor and Employment Government Information Library University of Colorado at Boulder Archived from the original on June 12 2009 Retrieved August 5 2009 Get Information About a Company Gov UK Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Company amp oldid 1149358333, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
