Articles of Organization are an integral part of your limited liability company or LLC. Actually, the articles of organization is the document, usually a form, that gets filed with the Secretary of State and officially forms your LLC. It is similar to the articles of incorporation, but that document forms a corporation where the articles of organization form an LLC. What goes into your articles of organization? Read More
Boilerplate Contract Provisions that May Be Harmful
Boilerplate contract provisions are those “standard” provisions that you see in almost every contract. The boilerplate contract provisions are usually found in the “fine print” that you mentally skip over because it's boilerplate and therefore you think it cannot be changed. Some of that standard language, however, can really hurt you. Here are some of the potentially more dangerous boilerplate contract Read More
How to Answer a Lawsuit
The answer to how to answer a lawsuit may not be at the top of your mind until one day when you're minding your store as the owner of your business and someone you've never seen before walks in and hands you and envelope saying, "You've been served.” You open the envelope and see a summons and a complaint with your company’s name in the spot for “defendant.” You have been sued. Now what? Now you have to find out how Read More
What Do You Need to Start a Small Business?
What Do You Need to Start a Small Business? In some cases you may need to hire a small business attorney and in some cases you may not. It's probably always a good idea to speak with a small business attorney before starting a business, however there are some times when you may be able to get away with not doing so. An instance you may not need to consult a small business attorney is if you are starting a Read More
Contract Terms and Conditions That Could Be Helpful
When entering into an agreement the contract terms and conditions should be read and assessed based on multiple factors, to include the outcome you wish to achieve. When evaluating the contract language, there are some “standard” contract terms and conditions that can really hurt you if you don’t understand it or agree to it. Additionally, there are some contract terms and conditions that can be very helpful to you Read More
Employment Policies – What’s So Special About Them?
Everyone talks about employment policies, I'm sure that is what you are thinking as a small business owner. But, what are employment policies and why do you need them? Employment policies are often disseminated in the form of an employee handbook. This book sets forth the employment policies that your small business has in place. There is a valid argument to have employment policies, even if your business is Read More
Non-Disclosure Agreement: Do I need one in California?
A Non-Disclosure Agreement in California is an agreement between two or more people or companies that limit what secrets, if any, you will share with them and what the other person to the agreement can do with those secrets. I'll provide a couple examples of instances when a Non-Disclosure Agreement may be warranted: Example No. 1: You decide to go into business with someone else to develop your new iPhone Read More
How To Find An Attorney To Represent Your Small Business When You Have Been Sued
How to Find an Attorney Of course, as a small business owner one of the relationships you should form early on is one with a small business attorney. But, if you need to figure out how to find an attorney, then you can follow one or more of these steps: 1. Ask Around. You can ask for recommendations from (1) other business owners; (2) professionals, such as your insurance broker, accountants, bankers and others Read More
Legal Forms: A Good Idea for Small Business Use?
I am running across more and more small business owners who have declared to me that practicing law is a matter of completing legal forms. Well, sort of. What these small business owners are missing is multi-fold: 1) There are plenty of legal forms on the internet and elsewhere, but part of the issue is knowing which legal forms to complete. 2) The form you may think you need may not be the correct form at Read More
Do I Need a Small Business Attorney for My Small Business?
Usually you do not need a small business attorney for your small business. However, some situations present themselves which probably lend themselves to finding a small business attorney. Some times you may be looking for a small business attorney include: Your Company or You Are Sued That's not too hard. Although you can usually represent yourself in court and do not need to hire a small business attorney Read More
