Limited partners become general partners when they participate in the management of the business. A joint venture is a business activity carried out by two or more persons. There is no legislation which specifically regulates joint ventures in Ontario, and there is no precise legal definition or status for a joint venture. When a new corporation is formed to carry on the joint venture business, it is sometimes referred to as an incorporated joint venture. A non-resident corporation or individual can also carry on business in Ontario by means of a partnership or joint venture arrangement.
Corporations can enter into such an arrangement either directly or through a Canadian subsidiary.
It is not uncommon for a foreign corporation, either directly or through a wholly-owned Canadian subsidiary, to form what amounts to an incorporated joint venture with another corporation. Typically, such arrangements involve the licensing of specific technology or know-how to the Canadian joint venture corporation. A branch must be licensed or registered in Ontario and any other province in which the foreign company wishes to carry on business. Legally, the branch has no separate status from the foreign company itself, it is merely carrying on business in Ontario. The foreign company will be liable to the employees and creditors of the branch for the actions of, and debts contracted by, its managers and agents on behalf of the branch.