Business law,  is the body of law that applies to the rights, relations, and conduct of persons and businesses engaged in commerce, merchandising, trade, and sales. It is often considered to be a branch of civil law and deals with issues of both private law and public law.

Start-Ups:

Determining the correct business structure is an essential decision not to be overlooked.  Each business type (Corporation, LLC, LLP,  SCorp to name a few) brings with it certain levels of liability and tax consequences and requires specific paperwork to be filed with the state and federal governments.

Are you opening a business by yourself or with another person or several people?  Are you borrowing money or putting up your own money? Will you have employees?  What insurance will your business need? Will you need separate bank accounts and in which State should your accounts be located?  These are just a few of the questions that need to be considered to help determine the business structure that is best for you.

Business Agreements:

One of the most overlooked aspects of starting any type of business is the paperwork that will be needed.  Will you have partners? Will you have investors? Make sure that you and your business are protected.  Will you need a Partnership Agreement or Shareholder Agreement?  Does the State require an Operating Agreement to be filed?

People always have the best of intentions when opening a business but too often people are unprepared when things go wrong.  Litigation between owners can be extremely expensive and time consuming.  Having a solid Agreement in place detailing the rights and procedures can save you time and money.   In many states, including Pennsylvania, you are only allowed to collect attorney fees in a legal action if you have a contract that specifically grants you this right or if there is the (very rare) state law that allows for attorney fees to be paid in your specific situation.

Business Papers:

All businesses require a myriad of contracts, form and agreements in order to run successfully.  Below is a sample of the business papers that we can create or review:

Invoices

Sales Contacts/Purchase Orders

Vendor Agreements

Indemnity Agreements

Non-Disclosure Agreements

Property Leases (LEN: Have “Property Leases” be a click on that links to commercial landlord tenant please)

Equipment Leases

Employment Agreements:

General Employment Agreements

Non-Compete Agreements

Non-Solicitation Agreements

Non-Disclosure Agreements

Business Dissolution:

If you are dissolving a business or changing the structure of your business you may be required to file certain papers with the State of Federal Government. Dissolving a business may be simple or extremely complex depending on the circumstances. What happens with the business assets?  Does the business have active creditors? Are there an active or foreseen lawsuits against the business?  What are the deadlines once the dissolution process begins?  Are there penalties if deadlines are missed?  These are just some of the questions that have to be considered in order to facilitate your business dissolution in the best possible matter.