All small business must grapple with it—when to hire a business attorney. Companies in Florida are no different. They must decide whether to hire a Florida business attorney from the start to make sure they do their due diligence or risk having to hire one when a problem arises.
It’s a tough question to answer, especially because most small businesses don’t have a lot of extra capital to spend. But avoiding talking to an attorney because you don’t think you have the money necessary to hire one can be even more devastating than hiring one to make sure that you’re on the right track. It can even cost you the business if you get sued because you didn’t have the right protections in place.
Here’s what you should know about hiring a business attorney.
When Small Business Owners Might Want to Hire a Florida Business Attorney
There are certain things pertaining to your business that you might be thinking of doing on your own. While you do not need to hire a business attorney for the following actions, it might be in your best interest if you want to make sure that you have everything covered.
- Creating contracts for employees, clients, customer, and vendors
- Creating a buy-sell agreement
- Creating a limited liability company operating agreement, partnership agreements, and shareholder’s agreements
- Negotiating contracts
- Protecting intellectual property
When Small Business Owners Definitely Need a Business Attorney
Some things in business are best left to a legal mind. In the interest of serving your company in the best way possible, and to cover yourself legally, you should definitely hire a business attorney to handle the following.
- Choosing a business entity when starting out, or changing to another entity after the fact
- Negotiating mergers and acquisitions
- Disputes between partners
- Litigation
Contacting a knowledgeable attorney to help with the above will help you maintain a successful business. However, most of the time a little bit of preventative planning will go a long way.
Prevention
While you should consider hiring a Florida business attorney for the issues above, you can also take steps to prevent problems from arising at all. Talking to a business attorney about your needs can prevent a lot from happening to your business—by the time you’re being sued, for example, your business has already sustained serious damage to its reputation and its ability to function. In the case of litigation, if you take preventive measures, you can avoid a costly court battle. Another example: when you choose your business entity when starting your business, choosing the right one is extremely important if you want your business to succeed. An LLC offers different advantages over a partnership and a corporation, and vice versa. It all depends on your situation.
Do you need help from an expert Florida business attorney? Don’t wait to get in touch with the legal team at AM Law. We will help you find a solution that fits your needs so that you can do what you do best: run your business.