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Chapter 16 Corporation: General Characteristics and Formation

Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, you should understand the following:

  1. The historical background of the corporation
  2. How partnerships compare with corporations
  3. What the corporation is as a legal entity, and how corporate owners can lose limited liability by certain actions
  4. How corporations are classified

The corporation is the dominant form of the business enterprise in the modern world. As a legal entity, it is bound by much of the law discussed in the preceding chapters. However, as a significant institutional actor in the business world, the corporation has a host of relationships that have called forth a separate body of law.