Short answer. Article 1776 classifies a partnership as either universal or particular based on its object. A universal partnership pools broad categories of property or profits among the partners, while a particular partnership is formed around a specific undertaking, a determinate thing, or a limited object rather than everything the partners own or earn.
What the law says
As to its object, a partnership is either universal or particular.
Civil Code, Article 1776 — Classes of Partnership. Read the full provision →
What the law says
A universal partnership may refer to all the present property or to all the profits.
Civil Code, Article 1777 — Universal Partnership. Read the full provision →
What the law says
A partnership of all present property is that in which the partners contribute all the property which actually belongs to them to a common fund, with the intention of dividing the same among themselves, as well as all the profits which they may acquire therewith.
Civil Code, Article 1778 — Universal Partnership of All Present Property. Read the full provision →
What the law says
A universal partnership of profits comprises all that the partners may acquire by their industry or work during the existence of the partnership.
Civil Code, Article 1780 — Universal Partnership of Profits. Read the full provision →
The classification turns on the partnership's object
Article 1776 sorts partnerships by what they cover, stating that as to its object, a partnership is either universal or particular. A universal partnership is built around broad categories: all of the partners' present property, or all of what they will earn going forward. A particular partnership, by contrast, is built around something narrower and specific, a defined undertaking, a determinate thing, or a limited business object, rather than everything the partners own or will ever earn together.
The two forms a universal partnership can take
Article 1777 explains that a universal partnership may refer to all the present property or to all the profits. In the first version, described in Article 1778, the partners contribute all the property which actually belongs to them to a common fund, with the intention of dividing the same among themselves, as well as all the profits which they may acquire therewith. In the second version, a universal partnership of profits, Article 1780 provides that it comprises all that the partners may acquire by their industry or work during the existence of the partnership, while each partner's existing property generally remains their own, with only its use passing to the partnership.
What sets a particular partnership apart
A particular partnership is not defined by the sweeping scope a universal partnership has. Instead of pooling all present property or all future earnings, the partners agree to combine efforts or resources for a specific, limited object, such as a single project, a defined line of business, or a particular activity. Property and earnings unrelated to that specific object generally remain outside the partnership, which is the core distinction from a universal arrangement where the partners' present property or future profits are pooled far more broadly.
Why the distinction matters in practice
Because a universal partnership reaches so much of the partners' property or earnings, it carries far broader consequences for each partner's personal finances than a particular partnership limited to a specific undertaking. Anyone entering a partnership agreement should be clear about which category the arrangement falls into, since a partnership formed for one narrow business venture is very different in scope and exposure from one meant to pool everything the partners currently own or will earn while the partnership exists.
Related provisions
- Civil Code, Article 1776 — Classes of Partnership
- Civil Code, Article 1777 — Universal Partnership
- Civil Code, Article 1778 — Universal Partnership of All Present Property
- Civil Code, Article 1780 — Universal Partnership of Profits