What Does a Corporate Lawyer Do?
Corporate lawyers are lawyers who specialize in all legal matters that are business related, including contracts, commercial leases, business structure advice, buying and selling a business, and more. A Corporate lawyer will help you with any legal matters your business faces.
10 Good Reasons WHY Your Business Needs a Corporate Lawyer
In today’s business climate, every business owner needs to have a lawyer on their team. Lawsuits and other legal complications can arise seemingly out of nowhere, and you need to be protected. Here are 10 reasons you should have a relationship with a corporate lawyer.
1.Having a lawyer on your team can tilt the field to your advantage in the event of a lawsuit: If you are threatened with legal action, having a lawyer already on your team means that he already knows your business, which allows him to hit the ground running. Even more importantly, a savvy corporate lawyer will have constructed your business agreements in such a way that you will have an immediate advantage in a legal dispute.
2. A lawyer can ensure that your contracts and legal agreements are airtight: Many business owners don’t grasp the importance of solid contracts until it is too late. As a result, their agreements are vague or incomplete, and their clients, contractors, and associates may be able to take advantage. Having a lawyer on your team can help you avoid these costly oversights.
3. An experienced business lawyer can help you avoid mistakes of which you were not even aware: Running a business is full of potential legal pitfalls. This proves true for both experienced entrepreneurs and young business owners who are just getting started. A good business lawyer, with specific knowledge of your business, will help you avoid problems that you did not know existed, which can save you huge amounts of money and stress.
4.Other specialized assistance: A business lawyer can quickly help you realize when you need additional help – especially with complicated tax matters, or any other specialized assistance. A well-connected business lawyer will be able to quickly refer you to other professionals that can provide the assistance and the guidance that your business needs.
5.Easier to get paid: If a client, vendor, partner, or other associate owes you money and is dragging his feet on the matter, by simply asking your lawyer to send a request on your behalf, you can motivate immediate action. In the event that this alone is not enough to convince the individual to pay, your lawyer will know what your next steps should be in order to collect the money you are owed.
6. Real estate. Leases of commercial space–such as offices and retail stores–are highly complex and are always drafted to benefit the landlord. Because they tend to be “printed form” documents, you may be tempted to think they are not negotiable. Not so. Your attorney should have a standard “tenant’s addendum,” containing provisions that benefit you, that can be added to the printed form lease document.
7. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A): Conducting due diligence, negotiating, drafting, and generally overseeing “deals” that involve a corporation “merging” with another company or “acquiring” (purchasing) another company.
8. Corporate governance: Helping clients create the framework for how a firm is directed and controlled, such as by drafting articles of incorporation, creating bylaws, advising corporate directors and officers on their rights and responsibilities, and other policies used to manage the company.
9. Taxes and licenses. Although your accountant will prepare and file your business tax returns each year, your lawyer should know how to register your business for federal and state tax identification numbers, and understand the tax consequences of the more basic business transactions in which your business will engage.
10. Intellectual property. If you are in a media, design or other creative-type business, it is certainly a “plus” if your lawyer can help you register your products and services for federal trademark and copyright protection.
