Inc. = Ltd.?

[riglos]

Hi people!

I'd like to know whether the abbreviation "Inc." is the American equivalent for British "Ltd."

And here's another question:

If we should translate a legal document containing this word, from British English to American English (or viceversa), should we keep the term as part of the company name or should we still translate it? I'm asking this because legal systems differ in both countries.

Thanks a lot!

Mara.

[sbourque]

The term "Ltd." should be kept as it's part of the name. "Inc." indicates that the firm is a corporation, i.e. has limited liability, but as for equivalency with "Ltd." I'm not sure--we have limited liability companies in the U.S. ("LLC") now as well as corporations.