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DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CORPORATIONS AND LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANIES IN STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT

A. Corporations

  1. The owners are shareholders and receive stock certificates. The shareholders elect the board of directors annually.
  2. The board of directors sets the general direction of the corporation and votes on major decisions, but does not engage in day-to-day management. It also elects/fires the officers on an as-needed basis.
  3. In California, if a corporation has one shareholder, there only needs to be one director (but there can be more). If a corporation has two shareholders, there needs to be at least two directors (but again, there can be more). If a corporation has three or more shareholders, there needs to be at least three directors (but there can be more). (California Corporations Code Section 212.)
  4. The officers run the business on a day-to-day basis.
  5. In California, three officers are required: President, corporate Secretary and CFO/Treasurer. Other officer positions – CEO, Vice President, etc. – are optional. One person can fill all three (or two of the three) required positions, but banks often require that different fill the President and Secretary positions unless there is only a single shareholder.
  6. California corporations must hold one shareholders meeting annually and it is strongly recommended that they hold at least one board of directors meeting annually (actually, the resolutions simply can be signed by all directors) and whenever a major decision needs to be made.
  7. With a corporation, each owner has the same percentage of ownership, voting power and, if the corporation is a Subchapter S, profits and losses.

B. Limited Liability Companies (LLC’s)

  1. LLC’s generally do not have shareholders, directors or officers. (Although an LLC can be organized to have these, it’s rare.)
  2. The owners of an LLC are members and frequently have membership “units”.
  3. LLC’s can have one of two management structures: member-managed – where each member takes an active role in running the business and can sign contracts (like a general partnership) — and manager-managed – where one or more managers operate the business and sign contracts (like a limited partnership). In any case, no meetings of the managers or members are required to be held.
  4. Often the operating agreement requires that extremely major decisions (such as sale or dissolution of the LLC) be made by a majority or super-majority (more than 50%) of the ownership interests.
  5. With an LLC, an owner can have different percentages of ownership (meaning the percentage of proceeds if the LLC is sold), voting power and profits and losses. For example, an LLC owner can have 25% of the ownership (meaning 25% of the proceeds if the LLC is sold), 10% of the voting power and 5% of the profits and losses.

The above information is provided as a guideline and is not meant as a substitute for an attorney’s advice. No attorney Client relationship is created through the dissemination of this information. Please consult with an attorney for any legal issues and problems.

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This article is informational only and meant to provide guidance. It is not meant to be legal advice and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. For what to do in your specific situation, please consult with a qualified Construction Law attorney.

Testimonials

Ghassemian Law provided thoroughly constructed and effective legal strategies for successful outcomes in the complex world of construction law for our small company. Core competence, due diligence, and a commitment to client needs are strengths that inspire confidence and keep producing results when it counts most.

Peter Greenberger

Pacwest Construction and Development Inc

Mahyar and her team possess a wealth of construction and business law expertise. Expertise to both guide a client away from litigation and, if not possible, to skillfully represent them in court.

Thierry Montoya

AlvaradoSmith APC

Mahyar Ghassemian and her firm are the best construction dispute litigators and negotiators in the industry. Mahyar is an expert in this area. Her firms knows the law and are very tenacious in obtaining the best results for their clients. I have been involved in very lengthy litigation as co-counsel in a very big case and jury trial. Mahyar is one of the hardest working and most effective advocates I have ever had the privilege of working with.

Paul Hoffman

Hoffman Legal Corporation

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