Overview

German law offers numerous alternatives for pursuing entrepreneurial activities. The corporate legal forms available for this purpose are for the most part defined in German statutory regulations which may be modified by contractual provisions to a greater or lesser extent.
This briefing provides an overview of the various legal frameworks within which businesses can operate in Germany. It comments on the main characteristics of the various legal forms and their differences, the formation, functioning and the liability of the respective corporate forms. The analysis begins with the German limited liability company (GmbH) as the most common form of corporation in Germany. The focus then turns to the German stock corporation (AG) whose shares can be traded on a stock exchange, followed by the partnership limited by shares (KGaA) and the limited liability partnership (GmbH &
Co. KG). The establishment of branch offices of foreign companies is also briefly dealt with. The briefing concludes with an overview of the most recent corporate law developments in European legislation and the various tax law issues applicable to businesses.