Commercial Law – SXSW Legal

How Assets Are Disposed Of When A Business Closes

Businesses can close for all kinds of reasons including a change in the market conditions, substantial financial losses, or simply that the owner is retiring and no longer wishes to continue with their business. Whether it is any of these reasons, or some other reason, closing a business has several legal implications which is why the advice of a commercial lawyer should always be sought when closing a business.

The legalities that must be sorted of as part of the closing process will include settling all the liabilities that the business has, and the disposal of any assets the company owns. The process of disposing of the assets has several steps which include making reference to a hierarchy of the people and entities which are liable to receive payments from any funds raised from the sale of the assets.

The first stage of selling assets is to create an inventory or a list of all the assets that the company owns. These assets can be physical assets such as stock, machinery, or equipment, and they can also be intangible assets such as trademarks, copyrights, intellectual rights, and patents. Once all the assets are listed, and a value placed against them, they can then be sold.

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5 Questions You Must Ask Yourself If You Are Considering Selling Your Business

For any business owner, there may come a point that they are thinking about, or have even decided, that they are selling their business. If so, then one of the first things they need to do is discuss this with their commercial lawyer who will be able to provide some legal advice for them about the legal steps that are necessary for such a sale.

In addition, the business owner needs to consider five very specific questions in relation to selling their business. These questions might not sway his decision, or reverse it, but the answers will help them to prepare for the sale and ensure that it goes as smoothly as they hope it will.

Who Is Buying The Business?

It is likely that if you have made it known that you are considering selling your business that pretty soon you will have one or more interested parties making contact. Depending on the type of business and its size, the range of those interested in buying it may include your competitors, investment companies, a sole entrepreneur, or it could be a partnership.

Depending on how much you want the reputation of the business to be maintained, and its customers and your employees to be treated every bit as well as you have, then you may consider that certain potential buyers do not have fit the criteria you are looking for and eliminate them from your shortlist.

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Dog Bite Litigation

No matter what side of a dog bite you’re on, it’s true that people love their dogs, there’s no denying it. Some 45% of households have canine pets and the way that people treat their dogs is changing. More are considering them companions, or “emotional support animals” and taking them out in public into areas where traditionally dogs have not gone. The number of travelers who have dogs with them has also dramatically increased. All these facts are supported by the increase in the number of people willing to pay for such things as health insurance for their pets and the amount of money spent on toys, etc. But be careful, owning a pet might put you in the situation where you’ll need a commercial lawyer to give you some legal advice.

There are more opportunities than ever now for something unfortunate to happen such as a bite or an attack. Emotions can run very high when someone is injured and when the dog owner has a strong connection to the animal. If you have been bitten, or attacked by a dog it’s important to make sure you get the facts straight before filing a law suit.

Facts About the Scene

It’s critical to investigate and find out who was at the scene and when each person was there. It’s good to create a list of the people who were present and collect contact information from each of them.

Find out about what agencies, if any, responded when the bite or attack happened. Were the police called? Did animal control arrive and take the dog away? If there were reports filed by any agencies it’s important to get copies or if witness statements were taken you should obtain copies of those as well. As you collect the information about the scene build a timeline using witness statements and reports to build a timeline of what happened.

Facts About the Accident

Try to compile as much information about the pet owner and the property owner as possible;

Who occupies the property?
Are they an owner, renter, relative of the dog’s owner?
Were weapons or drugs present? Was alcohol involved in the incident? Was anyone intoxicated?
What exactly where the injuries caused by the dog? Documenting treatment in the emergency room or doctor’s office with an exact medical diagnosis and treatment it critical.
What is the full description of the dog including breed, age, color, distinct markings?
Is there a prior history of the dog biting or attacking anyone?
Were there any pictures taken of the dog, of your injuries, of the scene?

Whether you are the dog’s owner, or the victim, it’s important to gather as many facts as possible. Law differ among jurisdictions but in some locations the entirety of the circumstances is becoming a strong factor on how courts rule on dog bits, so knowing as much as possible is key.

Learn about whether the dog owner, or property owner has liability insurance for a dog bite claim. Even landlords who do not occupy the premises may (depending on the jurisdiction) still have incurred liability if they knew of the dog and permitted it to remain on the property.

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A Comprehensive Business Contract can Help with Strategic Planning

Legally sound and detailed business contracts can help protect partners’ investments as well as the business from potential disputes and problems. Experienced commercial lawyers like Rowe Bristol can negotiate favourable terms as well as ensure that the contract is legally valid under Australian commercial law. Businesses that operate without a business contract in place are faced with increased risks of unresolved disputes and costs and potential litigation as well. Writing out a commercial contract not only involves drafting the terms and conditions but also includes understanding commercial considerations, understanding the importance of negotiating terms as well as tactics that should be employed to get the best out of the transaction.

In fact, it’s best if you choose to involve corporate lawyers at an early stage so that they are able to provide guidance on rules and regulations as well as help with strategic planning. Many times, the commercial requirements of the business may not be in accordance with what is allowed by Australian law. Hence, while negotiating, commercial lawyers can offer expert advice on a wide range of relevant issues that may need to be considered. Some important considerations are explained below:

Improved understanding of laws that govern unfair terms and conditions between businesses and customers
Information with regard to credit, loans and debt among business partners
Advice regarding protection of data and freedom of information
Actions that should be taken in the face of breach of contract, insolvency or bankruptcy
Actions that should be taken in the event of internal disputes and corresponding steps to safeguard the business from adverse consequences

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How To Choose An SEO Consultant For Your Law Firm

SEO is one area of internet marketing that your law firm really needs to understand but unfortunately it has even the most seasoned of marketers running for the hills sometimes. Such is the amount of contradictory information, and indeed myths about SEO that it is virtually impossible to know what to believe.

If you are starting an online business you’ll want to get your website optimised for the search engines as quickly as possible, and unless you are already an SEO expert it is best that you employ someone who is. Unless you are already a very large business then this person is not going to be a company employee, but rather they are going to be an SEO expert who works on a freelance basis for clients.

To ensure you select someone who you can trust to do the job of optimising your website effectively, there are several enquiries you want to make first.

Prior to speaking to the potential consultant, you can undertake some research which will give you a fair picture of how credible and reliable they may be. Firstly, by visiting their own website you can establish how long they have been operating for. A consultant who has been around for several years doesn’t do so if their work is not up to scratch.

Next look for testimonials on their site, and even better, see if the names of the clients making those testimonials are present. Armed with the name of previous clients you can then contact some of them to discuss how they felt about the work that the SEO consultant has already done for them.

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How to Choose a Digital Agency for Your Law Firm

Digital marketing is essential when it comes to getting the most out of your modern business. Unfortunately, many small business owners don’t realise this, and they therefore get left way behind their competition – unless they are absolutely outstanding at what they do, and the number of businesses who can claim this is dwindling.

Unless you are an experienced digital marketing expert yourself, you need to seriously consider using a professional digital agency to make sure that you get the most out of your money. However, it is important to make sure that you don’t fall into the trap of using a cheap agency which doesn’t have a proven track record and a lot of experience. Doing this can cause a lot of problems. The benefits of choosing a digital agency with proven experience include:

You will get a quality outside perspective:

Sure, you might already have a marketing team which is doing a serviceable job. They might even be continually increasing your sales and working towards a shared company vision. However, an outside view from an experienced digital agency can still be invaluable. It can be the difference between success and extremely high success. If you are serious about getting the most out of your business, then employ an experienced, proven digital agency, even if it’s just for a short period of time.

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5 Questions to Ask about Contracts

Lawyers would advise their clients to never sign any contract without allowing their legal professional to go through it first. Every business person will need a contract of some kind as some stage in their business, whether it is with clients, suppliers, sub-contractors or a landlord. If the contract has been drawn up by that person’s lawyer, you should always get your own commercial lawyers to read through it and find all those hidden clauses that are likely to cause you trouble in time, costs or some other way.

Your legal professional will then rewrite the contract to ensure it works in your favour as much as possible. There are five questions to ask yourself about contracts.

What warranties are included? Warranties are all part of the contract, but if you breach one – don’t do what it says – then the other party can terminate the contract. If the contract is one that you’ve provided, make sure the warranties you offer are things that you can control.
What happens at termination? Contracts sometimes have to be terminated before their term ends, for various reasons. It’s important to include what happens in such a case to ensure you are covered financially and legally. You don’t want to be left with out of pocket expenses. Or you might rather each party can walk away without any further liability. If so, it needs to be clearly stated.

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Does the Executor of a Deceased Estate Need Legal Advice

An executor is a person named in someone’s Will to act on behalf of their estate to carry out their last wishes and generally administer the estate. There will be detailed instructions in the Will of the deceased. Sometimes this job is easy because the deceased had few assets and their Will was made clear. It is a simple matter of paying their debts, closing their bank accounts and distributing assets to their heirs.

However, if the deceased had a lot of assets such as shares or a business, things can be much more complicated. Unless the executor has business experience they may not have enough knowledge about what or how to administer the deceased estate. In this case they can refuse to take on the task or they can get advice from a qualified deceased estate lawyers. The fees for this will be covered by the estate and are usually quite affordable.

We asked legal advisors at Goodsell Law, they told us the duties of an executor are as follows. They must: –

Notify the beneficiaries.
Take care of the deceased’s business interests, if any.
Safeguard assets and income.
Invest money that is not needed immediately.
Collect any valuables.
Make sure everything is insured.
Value the estate including personal effects, cash, assets and debts.

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How to Minimise the Damage Litigation Causes in Your Small Business

There are many costs in litigation and not all are financial. Most litigation lawyers will tell you there is also a cost in time lost, stress and the reputation of the business. If you’ve been unfortunate enough to be sued by an unhappy employee or client, how can you mitigate the loss faced by your business and by you, as the business owner and possibly, the manager?

Financial loss

In fact, this is most likely the easiest one. You need to have enough insurance to pay both the court costs and the payout to the person who sued you. It should also cover the costs inherent in lost time and loss of key staff, if that is an issue – and it often is. Employees take sides and are likely to leave if they side with a fellow worker they perceive as being in the right. No one should ever start a business without the right kind of insurance. If you can’t afford it, you should not be in business.

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How to Stop Hackers from Destroying your Online Presence?

Anything from a bad review to a negative comment can ruin your online reputation beyond measures. Many businesses that are operating on the online forefront don’t realize that even hackers can cause damage to their business and make everyone run away from them. In order to protect the online reputation that you have built over the years, it is important to get good advice from a digital marketing company and learn to keep hackers from getting the best of you.

Below is a list of tips that will help you keep hackers from sabotaging your online presence.

Register Website Domains With Your Name
A good way to ensure that hackers are not able to destroy your online reputation is to purchase every domain with your name. Businesses should also ensure that they buy .net, .org, and .biz domains with their name.

Register Different Profiles With Your Name
Businesses should also create profiles on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and MySpace with their company’s name and their own. This is a great way to ensure that your online profiles are safe from hackers.

Create Search Engine Profiles
Creating Google and Yahoo profiles with your name is also a good way to protect your business from getting hacked and used by others.

Conduct A Google Search
Every company should make it a habit to monitor Google search results with their name. This research will allow businesses to find identity thieves that are trying to steal their name and falsifying their image. This is also a great way to find out about those who are using your content on their pages. Once you track these thieves, you can contact Espresso to handle the matter.

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