Jack and Jill, Inc. is an oilfield-drilling contractor. Jack and Jill have been dead for years and Hansel and Gretel, two of their grandchildren, now operate the business as a general partnership. They contract with companies such as ExxonMobil and BP-Amoco. Last year's contracts exceeded $1 million in revenues, an all-time high. The partnership currently employs 50 people on oil-rig crews and 10 in administrative positions. Hansel and Gretel each own 25% of the business (they acquired their interests from their deceased fathers, Humpty Dumpty and the Prince). Two aunts, Cinderella and Snow White, own the remaining 50%. Cinderella and Snow White, each in their early 80 s, have no children. The business was originally a sole proprietorship. Jack brought Humpty Dumpty and the Prince into the business, yet there was no formal partnership agreement. Cinderella and Snow White have never been actively involved in the business. They acquired their interests after Jack's wife, Jill, passed away and left it to them, her beloved sisters. Hansel and Gretel want to continue to expand the business and, eventually, sell the business to a "consolidator" (a company that buys local businesses, usually in exchange for a combination of stock, cash, and debt). Identify legal and regulatory issues to be considered in creating/modifying this business What legal entity choice would you make for this business and why?

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