Proper planning and organizational skills are crucial to the success of any business. Getting organized helps the business owner stay in control and ensures all the spelled out tasks are completed within acceptable time frames. Long-term business success, however, hinges a lot on sound management, professional guidance, and financial security. Professional, legal guidance can help a business deal with challenges emanating from business disputes, litigations and other issues that may be detrimental to the survival of the business. According to the Entrepreneur online magazine, business lawyers offer the following vital services:
• Help the business decide the best-operating structure
• Advice on issues concerning copyright, lawsuits and zoning compliance
• Assist in developing the hiring process
• Protect intellectual property
• Harness the receipt of funds from external sources
• Sign and negotiate contracts and deals on behalf of the business
Zoning laws are designed to govern how a business uses its own or leased property. A business lawyer will help a business comply with zoning rules and regulations at the state, county, city and local level. With regards to licensing and permits, a lawyer will ensure the business has all the necessary documents to operate seamlessly. Businesses operating in the sphere of design and media can benefit a lot from intellectual property protection. The lawyer can help the business register its services or products by obtaining federal trademark and ensure proper safeguards regarding copyright are put in place. Just as medical practitioners, attorneys serve in different areas of specializations. The key areas that concern business includes: contracts, real estate, intellectual property, taxes and licenses and business organization.
Reasons why hiring a business lawyer is crucial to business success
Although the need to hire a business attorney may not seem apparent at the beginning, the realization often sinks in when the business begins to encounter new challenges or grows out of its original boundaries. According to TonyMayLaw, most businesses hire attorneys to avoid common missteps; to get on top of things and to deal with contractual obligations. Businesses also hire attorneys to benefit from the lawyer’s negotiation skills and grasp of business laws and principles. Some of the missteps entrepreneurs can avoid by hiring a business lawyer include grounding the business on wrong structures and paying fictitious claims.
Business lawyers are also well-placed to advise businesses on the best legal course of action to take when faced with litigation. The same recourse applies when dealing with landlords, lenders, suppliers, and clients. To keep things under control and ensure the business stays on the right course, a good lawyer will make sure the interests of the business take precedence over everything else. For example, a contracted business lawyer will stand with the business to overcome the bad reputation, unsatisfied customers or mischievous clients and suppliers. A business will at one time or another deal with issues concerning franchise agreement, merger or contract disputes. Using their skills, business lawyers will guide the business through its contractual obligations by ensuring nothing impedes the path to growth.
Lawyers of Distinction
When hiring a business lawyer, you need to ask pertinent questions touching on experience, connection and the caliber of clients the firm has served previously. The other important considerations include flexibility, of the billing, likability factor and location of the law firm. Lawyers of Distinction is a peer law firm that employs the most distinct brains in legal practice. The Orlando, Florida based practice serves a large practice area that includes bankruptcy, tax law, estate planning law, corporate and transaction law, collections law, Insurance law, and antitrust law among others.
As experts in corporate and transaction law, distinction lawyers will help a business negotiate, draft and execute business agreements and contracts. The estate law experts, on the other hand, will help draft a will, manage the estate and trusts and evoke the power of attorney whenever called upon. As part of its wider obligation, the Lawyers of Distinction encourages registration of new members to an elite roster that promises the following benefits:
• Opportunity to have a profile on the member’s directory
• Access to membership publications
• Agreement to use logo and trademark
• Award of custom-made crystal statue and plaque
• SEO services to support members websites
• Press release mentions for honorees
• Membership discount of up to $5,000 on select car rentals and hotel reservations
Although the qualifying attorneys are selected based on peer recognition and competence in what they do, self-nomination is also allowed. The internal review process is conducted independently and includes assessment of subjective and objective factors. No single state is allowed to have over 10% of the attorneys in the Distinction membership roster. Businesses and individuals seeking legal services can visit Distinction Lawyer’s website and perform searches based on the lawyer’s names, practice area, and state.