Types of Russian Companies

Russian company law dictates the structure of and rules governing corporate entities in the Russian Federation. The Civil Code of the Russian Federation mentions the legal entities and their characteristics.

a) Russian General Partnership
The general partnership is an unincorporated business with two or more co-owners called general partners. All general partners take active part in the firm's management, are jointly and severally liable for the firm's obligations, and are bound by the actions of the other general partners. The general partnership operates on the basis of a constituent agreement which has to be signed by all partners.

b) Russian Limited Partnership

It is a business organization with one or more general partners, who manage the business and assume legal debts and obligations to the extent of all their assets, and one or more limited partners, who are liable only to the extent of their investments. Limited partners also enjoy rights to the partnership's cash flow, but are not liable for company obligations. As the general partnership, this kind of business entity is founded, and operates on the basis of an agreement, signed by all the members of the partnership. This agreement regulates the role and structure of the company and the obligations and rights of the partners.

c) Russian Limited Liability Company

A Limited Liability Company may be established by one or more individuals or legal entities. It cannot have as its sole participant another business entity consisting of a single person. If the number of participants exceeds 50, the entity must be reorganized into an open joint stock company or a production cooperative within one year. In a limited liability company the participants have participation interests, which don't have to be registered with Russia’s Federal Securities Service. Every participant has equal rights and obligations, to the extent of their investment. The capital of the company consists of investments made by participants and has to reach a minimum of 10.000 rubles (currency of Russia).

d) Russian double liability company

It is a company founded by one ore more persons, whose capital is divided into shares defined by the company's constituent documents. The participants of such a company bear in common the subsidiary liability by its obligations, with their property in the amount of their contributions. In case of the bankruptcy of one of the participants, his liability by the company's obligations is distributed among the rest of the participants proportionately to their contributions,

e) Russian Joint-Stock Company

A joint-stock company is a company, the authorized capital of which is divided into a certain number of shares. Shareholders bear no responsibility for its obligations and run the risk, within the value of shares belonging to them, of losses associated with the company's activity. joint-stock company in which shares can be traded freely and which may have unlimited number of shareholders is an open joint-stock company. Such joint-stock companies have the right to organize a public subscription to the shares issued by it and sell them on the open market. The company whose shares are distributed only among its founders or within another circle of persons, defined in advance, is a closed joint-stock company.

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