limited liability

Definition

A legal structure where business owners aren't personally responsible for company debts or liabilities beyond their investment. It's what allows entrepreneurs to take risks without fearing they'll lose their house when the startup fails.

Example Usage

Thanks to the LLC's limited liability protection, the investors lost only their initial $50,000 investment when the company was sued for millions.

Origin

Developed in 19th century corporate law, revolutionizing business organization and risk-taking

Fun Fact

Courts can 'pierce the corporate veil' and impose personal liability if owners treat the company as their personal piggy bank, mixing funds or ignoring corporate formalities.

Source: Common legal terminology

Related Terms

Intermediate

depose

To forcibly remove a leader from power (think kings and dictators), or in legal contexts, to question someone under oath during a deposition. The first meaning involves coups and revolutions; the second involves lawyers, transcriptionists, and hours of tedious testimony. Both definitions share the theme of making someone leave their comfortable position, whether it's a throne or a witness chair.

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legislation

The sausage-making process of democracy where elected officials turn ideas into actual laws that people have to follow, complete with all the compromises and amendments that make the final product barely recognizable. It's how vague campaign promises become binding legal obligations, usually after months of committee meetings and backroom deals. The reason why your simple suggestion to "fix that problem" requires 200 pages of whereas clauses and subsection references.

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Garnishment

When the court decides to take money directly from your paycheck before you even get to be disappointed by it yourself. Not to be confused with the parsley on your dinner plate, though both leave you feeling robbed.

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nolo contendere

A plea in which the defendant doesn't admit guilt but accepts punishment, Latin for 'I do not wish to contend.' It's the legal equivalent of 'I'm not saying I did it, but I'm not fighting about it either.'

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Retainer

A large sum of money you pay a lawyer upfront for the privilege of having them answer your phone calls, kind of like a subscription service for legal advice except Netflix never charged $500 an hour for buffering. Your lawyer's version of a security deposit.

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overturn

What happens when a higher court looks at a lower court's decision and says 'nah, you got it wrong.' It's the legal system's version of an undo button, flipping rulings upside down and occasionally changing the course of history. One day you've won your case, the next day an appeals court has overturned it and you're back to square one with extra legal bills.

⚖️ Legal

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