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Many entrepreneurs have a deep-seated distrust for lawyers. They hate accumulating hefty legal fees or waiting for a lawyer to tell them why they should not undertake certain ventures. While as an entrepreneur you view yourself as a problem solver, a lawyer is trained to identify potential problems before they occur. Even if you have a small company, many legal issues can arise in its early years, and these include setting up the legal framework and hiring your first employees. The law is a complicated subject, and your lawyer can help you understand available the options so that you may make the correct decisions. Here are several instances in which you should hire a lawyer in your business.
Litigation
Litigation is probably an obvious reason to hire a lawyer. Litigation includes where a business is being sued by a customer, current or former employee for the violation of a contract with a supplier or vendor, or government investigations for legal mishaps. Whatever the circumstances, once as a business you discover the possibility of litigation, it is time to hire a legal counselor.
Sale or Purchase of a Business
The purchasing or selling of a business involves many contracts and negotiations, and an attorney is well-suited for negotiating the terms and conditions of such transactions, performing due diligence, and informing you of potential issues that may arise. Legal experts such as Bob Bratt advise that finding an attorney for the sale or purchase of your business is vital since they can help you with any sales contract you may have to sign.
Filing a Patent
Patents are expensive, time-consuming and complicated. It is not strange for one to wait for years before receiving a patent approval. Patent lawyers are different from regular attorneys because they are required to know different laws, and they are involved with businesses in a slightly different way. For this reason, a patent lawyer can help your business to evaluate its product and determine if obtaining a patent can offer you a market advantage. They will also guide your business during the patent process smoothly, and explain to you your rights through all the stages of this process.
Forming a Corporation
The formation of a corporation with shareholders and board of directors is a very complicated process. From everything that is required in creating the corporation such as appointing directors and filing a charter of incorporation, it is essential to find a corporate attorney. A corporate lawyer is well-suited to manage the complexity of legal and tax obligations that are associated with creating the administrative organ of the corporation.
Special Allocations
When business partners determine that it is necessary to make “special allocations” of their business profits and losses in their LLC operating agreement or partnership, they should retain a lawyer. Special allocations can be complicated, and usually they require the assistance and expertise of a tax attorney so that they don’t get into trouble with the IRS while every party feels they are being treated fairly.
Most people generally view legal services as too expensive, but it is not as expensive as when the business faces tough legal issues. While there are many reasons why business owners avoid hiring a lawyer until it is too late, you should avoid such behavior. These tips will help you to know when you can hire a lawyer for your business and avoid the tough legal issues.
