Business organizations can be of three different types: sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation. A sole proprietorship is a business that is owned by one individual. A partnership is an unincorporated business that is owned by two or more people. A corporation is a legal entity, or artificial "person" that , by enabling laws, is endowed with all the powers, rights, liabilities, and duties of an individual. A cooperative is a special kind of business organization that is owned by and operated for the customers or patrons who do business with that organization. Most cooperative business organizations are incorporated businesses. As a result, there are two types of corporations--those that are investor-owned and those that are customer-owned (cooperatives).