limited liability company

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A company managed by members or elected managers, like a partnership, but with the liability of the members limited to the amount of capital they have invested in the business.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun law A type or form of for-profit incorporated company where ownership is divided into shares, and where the governing rules are set forth in a contract entered into by all of the initial shareholders. The name derives from the fact that regardless of potential losses or even bankruptcy of the corporation, individual shareholders will bear a maximum liability of the price they paid for their shares.