ARTICLE 4. Relations of Partners to Each Other and to Partnership [16401. - 16406.]

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP 4.

in effect

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16401. Section 16401.

(a) Each partner is deemed to have an account that is subject to both of the following: (1) Credited with an amount equal to the money plus the value of any other property, net of the amount of any liabilities, the partner contributes to the partnership and the partner’s share of the partnership profits. (2) Subject to Sections 16306 and 16957, charged with an amount equal to the money plus the value of any other property, net of the amount of any liabilities, distributed by the partnership to the partner and the partner’s share of the partnership losses. (b) Each partner is entitled to an equal share of the partnership profits and, subject to Sections 16306 and 16957, is chargeable with a share of the partnership losses in proportion to the partner’s share of the profits. (c) A partnership shall reimburse a partner for payments made and indemnify a partner for liabilities incurred by the partner in the ordinary course of the business of the partnership or for the preservation of its business or property. (d) A partnership shall reimburse a partner for an advance to the partnership beyond the amount of capital the partner agreed to contribute. (e) A payment or advance made by a partner that gives rise to a partnership obligation under subdivision (c) or (d) constitutes a loan to the partnership that accrues interest from the date of the payment or advance. (f) Each partner has equal rights in the management and conduct of the partnership business. (g) A partner may use or possess partnership property only on behalf of the partnership. (h) A partner is not entitled to remuneration for services performed for the partnership, except for reasonable compensation for services rendered in winding up the business of the partnership. (i) A person may become a partner only with the consent of all of the partners. (j) A difference arising as to a matter in the ordinary course of business of a partnership may be decided by a majority of the partners. An act outside the ordinary course of business of a partnership and an amendment to the partnership agreement may be undertaken only with the consent of all of the partners. (k) This section does not affect the obligations of a partnership to other persons under Section 16301.

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16402. Section 16402.

A partner has no right to receive, and may not be required to accept, a distribution in kind.

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16403. Section 16403.

(a) A partnership shall keep its books and records, if any, in writing or in any other form capable of being converted into clearly legible tangible form, at its principal office. (b) A partnership shall provide partners and their agents and attorneys access to its books and records. It shall provide former partners and their agents and attorneys access to books and records pertaining to the period during which they were partners. The right of access provides the opportunity to inspect and copy books and records during ordinary business hours. A partnership may impose a reasonable charge, covering the costs of labor and material, for copies of documents furnished. (c) Each partner and the partnership shall furnish to a partner, and to the legal representative of a deceased partner or partner under legal disability, both of the following, which may be transmitted by electronic transmission by the partnership pursuant to Section 16101: (1) Without demand, any information concerning the partnership’s business and affairs reasonably required for the proper exercise of the partner’s rights and duties under the partnership agreement or this chapter; and (2) On demand, any other information concerning the partnership’s business and affairs, except to the extent the demand or the information demanded is unreasonable or otherwise improper under the circumstances.

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16404. Section 16404.

(a) The fiduciary duties a partner owes to the partnership and the other partners are the duty of loyalty and the duty of care set forth in subdivisions (b) and (c). (b) A partner’s duty of loyalty to the partnership and the other partners includes all of the following: (1) To account to the partnership and hold as trustee for it any property, profit, or benefit derived by the partner in the conduct and winding up of the partnership business or derived from a use by the partner of partnership property or information, including the appropriation of a partnership opportunity. (2) To refrain from dealing with the partnership in the conduct or winding up of the partnership business as or on behalf of a party having an interest adverse to the partnership. (3) To refrain from competing with the partnership in the conduct of the partnership business before the dissolution of the partnership. (c) A partner’s duty of care to the partnership and the other partners in the conduct and winding up of the partnership business is limited to refraining from engaging in grossly negligent or reckless conduct, intentional misconduct, or a knowing violation of law. (d) A partner shall discharge the duties to the partnership and the other partners under this chapter or under the partnership agreement and exercise any rights consistently with the obligation of good faith and fair dealing. (e) A partner does not violate a duty or obligation under this chapter or under the partnership agreement merely because the partner’s conduct furthers the partner’s own interest. (f) A partner may lend money to and transact other business with the partnership, and as to each loan or transaction, the rights and obligations of the partner regarding performance or enforcement are the same as those of a person who is not a partner, subject to other applicable law. (g) This section applies to a person winding up the partnership business as the personal or legal representative of the last surviving partner as if the person were a partner.

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16405. Section 16405.

(a) A partnership may maintain an action against a partner for a breach of the partnership agreement, or for the violation of a duty to the partnership, causing harm to the partnership. (b) A partner may maintain an action against the partnership or another partner for legal or equitable relief, with or without an accounting as to partnership business, to do any of the following: (1) Enforce the partner’s rights under the partnership agreement. (2) Enforce the partner’s rights under this chapter, including all of the following: (A) The partner’s rights under Section 16401, 16403, or 16404. (B) The partner’s right on dissociation to have the partner’s interest in the partnership purchased pursuant to Section 16701 or 16701.5, or to enforce any other right under Article 6 (commencing with Section 16601) or 7 (commencing with Section 16701). (C) The partner’s right to compel a dissolution and winding up of the partnership business under Section 16801 or enforce any other right under Article 8 (commencing with Section 16801). (3) Enforce the rights and otherwise protect the interests of the partner, including rights and interests arising independently of the partnership relationship. (c) The accrual of, and any time limitation on, a right of action for a remedy under this section is governed by other law. A right to an accounting upon a dissolution and winding up does not revive a claim barred by law.

Cal. Corporations Code - CORP § 16406. Section 16406.

(a) If a partnership for a definite term or particular undertaking is continued, without an express agreement, after the expiration of the term or completion of the undertaking, the rights and duties of the partners remain the same as they were at the expiration or completion, so far as is consistent with a partnership at will. (b) If the partners, or those of them who habitually acted in the business during the term or undertaking, continue the business without any settlement or liquidation of the partnership, they are presumed to have agreed that the partnership will continue.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026