A limited liability company (LLC) is one of two special forms of corporate organizations in the US that allow dividends to escape double taxation. A limited liability company (LLC) organization form has been authorized by the laws of more than 35 states as of the end of 2005. Similar to a Subchapter S corporation, it offers owners limited liability and its income is taxed only once as personal income of the shareholder. Unlike a Subchapter S corporation, however, an LLC can have an unlimited number of shareholders, including other corporations. The LLC can sell shares without completing the costly and time-consuming process of registering them with the SEC, which is a requirement for standard corporations that sell their securities to the public. The LLC structure has drawbacks in that, should an owner leave, all others must formally agree to continue the firm. Also, all of the LLC’s owners must take active roles in managing the company. To protect partners from unlimited liability, some partnerships, including large accounting firms such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, have changed their organizational forms to LLC.