A joint-stock company is a business entity where different stakes can be bought and owned by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by his or her shares (certificates of ownership). This allows for the unequal ownership of a business with some shareholders owning a larger proportion of a company than others. Shareholders are able to transfer their shares to others without any effects to the continued existence of the company.
In modern corporate law, the existence of a joint-stock company is often synonymous with incorporation (i.e. possession of legal personality separate from shareholders) and limited liability (meaning that the shareholders are only liable for the company's debts to the value of the money they invested in the company). And as a consequence joint-stock companies are commonly known as corporations or limited companies.
Some jurisdictions still provide the possibility of registering joint-stock companies without limited liability. In the United Kingdom and other countries which have adopted their model of company law, these are known asunlimited companies. In the United States, they are known simply as "joint-stock companies".
