These duties are imposed by law and are not subject to a contract to the contrary. Being mandatory in nature, these duties are applicable to all partnership and cannot be varied by agreement among the partners. The following are the absolute duties of partners:
1. Duty to carry on the business to the greatest common advantage (Sec. 9):
Every partner is bound to carry on the business of the firm to the greatest common advantage. It implies that every partner must use his knowledge and skill for the benefit of the firm and not for his personal gain. He must conduct the business with the best of his ability and secure maximum benefits for the firm.
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2. Duty to be just and faithful inter-se (Sec. 9):
An ideal partnership is one where there is mutual trust and confidence, and spirit of helpfulness and goodwill among the partners. As such every partner must be just and faithful to his copartners. He must observe utmost good faith and fairness towards other partners of the firm.
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3. Duty to render true accounts (Sec. 9):
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Every partner must render true and proper accounts to his co-partners. It implies that each partner must be ready to explain the accounts of the firm and produce vouchers in support of the entries. No partner should think of making a secret profit at the expense of the firm.
4. Duty to provide full information (Sec. 9):
Every partner must give full information of all things affecting the firm to his co-partners. A partner, being an agent of other partners, must not conceal any information concerning the firm from the other partners by reason of the law of agency as well. Law of agency provides that knowledge to the agent is deemed to be knowledge to the principal.
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5. Duty to indemnify for loss caused by fraud (Sec. 10):
A partner can cause loss to the firm by his neglect or want of skill or omission or fraud while acting in the ordinary course of business. The general practice is that where a partner acts bonafide the loss caused by his neglect or want of skill or omission is borne by the firm.
But when the loss is caused by fraud committed against a third party by a partner, the same must be recovered from the guilty partner and cannot be shared among all the partners.
Section 10 gives statutory recognition to this rule and provides that “every partner must indemnify the firm for any loss caused to it by his fraud in the conduct of the business of the firm.” The object of this provision is to discourage partners to deal fraudulently in the conduct of the business.
6. Duty to be liable jointly and severally (Sec. 25):
Every partner is liable, jointly with all the other partners and also severally, to third parties for all acts of the firm done while he is a partner. The liability of all the partners is not only joint and several but is also unlimited.
Thus if a firm fails to pay a creditor, he may at his discretion bring an action against some or all the partners for the whole amount.
7. Duty not to assign his interest (Sec. 29):
No partner can assign or transfer his partnership interest to any other person so as to make him a partner in the business without the consent of all other partners. He can, however, assign his share of the profit and his share in the assets of the firm but the transferee shall not have any right to interfere in the conduct of the business.