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Who are you going to call when you need help?
“I don’t need legal advice – I only do business with people I trust.”
“Why should I pay through the nose for a lawyer to read this contract? I can read as well as any lawyer.”
Common Misconceptions:
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“We live in a ‘law thick’ world (Hadfield 2010), in which the structure, relationships and activities of small businesses are set against a complex and extensive backdrop of law. This means that many of the day to day and transformational issues and problems that small businesses face have a legal dimension.”
Source: Report to the Legal Services Board – A FRAMEWORK FOR THE BENCHMARKING OFSMALL BUSINESS CONSUMERS’ NEED FOR AND USE OF LEGAL SERVICES. (May 2012)
SME law is a minefield of legislation
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Trust issues! (2)…To Trust or Not to Trust?
• My experience as a lawyer has taught me that, in the business world at any rate, trust is not only foolhardy, but downright dangerous.
• Here are some real examples of what clients have said to me over the years:
• “He’s being so unreasonable. Sure he gave me an interest free loan to set up, but now I’m working 7 days a week and he’s taking half the profit for doing nothing…”
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• “I can’t understand her, we’ve worked together for 15 years to build up this business, and now that she’s divorcing her Husband she wants to settle by giving him half the business, just so that she can get more maintenance and keep her pension.”
• “We got along fine until the downturn but now he says that he wants to sell the business because he’s in difficulties with his mortgage. I told him not to over-extend himself.”
• “Sure she’s good at rainmaking, but she’s always left me to do the hard graft, and all of a sudden, without consulting me, she wants to sell out to her friend whom she knows I’ve never liked, and couldn’t work with in a million years.”
Trust issues! (3)…That is the question.
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Putting your head in the sand might make you
feel good, but…
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Source: “The Register”
It might not be your fault but it could be a
show stopper!
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It never solves inevitable problems.
• Fortunately there were no casualties, but there’s no doubt that many businesses were disrupted that day and probably for weeks afterwards.
• If you were a supplier in such a situation would you be protected from being sued for breach of contract? A lawsuit that could certainly damage your business financially, and perhaps end it.
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Ask yourself these two simple questions
1.Do your contracts contain “force majeure” clauses?
2.Do you have adequate insurance cover?
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If you answered “yes” to both then you’re safe. If not, then you might find yourself in the Insolvency Court.
Terms and Conditions, and Contracts are not simply “nice to have’s” they are vital to the survival of your business. A lawyer who can check your insurance policy is also a good idea, to put it mildly.
IS THIS HOW YOU WANT TO RUN YOUR BUSINESS???
Its too easy to “slip up”.
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• Succession Planning• Corporate governance review and development• Strategic review and development • Business review, business planning, prioritization,
budgeting• Risk Management, building risk based approach to best
business practice• Regulatory Compliance and Audit• Turnarounds and restructuring• Debt recovery and cashflow planning
Just ask [email protected]
And we can help you with…
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Ok, so you pay your personal and corporation tax, you have all the insurance you think you need (and some you don’t think you need) so you sleep like a baby. However…
Is your business fully compliant in e.g. these areas?
• Employment Law• Anti-discrimination legislation• Disability legislation• Health and Safety legislation• Consumer protection legislation• The Bribery Act• The Data Protection Act• The Money Laundering Regulations• Local Authority Bye-laws• National Laws• European Law• International Law (e.g. “Spamming” and online sales)
How compliant are you? (2)
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