partnership legal definition

A voluntary joining of two or more persons to jointly carry on and profit from a single business. A partnership is presumed to exist if the persons have agreed to proportionally share the losses and profits from that enterprise.

A partnership comprised of one or more people in charge of the business who are personally responsible for the debts of the partnership (known as general partners) and one or more people who provide capital and share in the profits but who do not manage the business and are responsible only for the amount of their contribution (known as limited partners).