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Setting up a business involves complying with a range of legal requirements. Find out which ones apply to you and your new enterprise.
What particular regulations do specific types of business (such as a hotel, or a printer, or a taxi firm) need to follow? We explain some of the key legal issues to consider for 200 types of business.
While poor governance can bring serious legal consequences, the law can also protect business owners and managers and help to prevent conflict.
Whether you want to raise finance, join forces with someone else, buy or sell a business, it pays to be aware of the legal implications.
From pay, hours and time off to discipline, grievance and hiring and firing employees, find out about your legal responsibilities as an employer.
Marketing matters. Marketing drives sales for businesses of all sizes by ensuring that customers think of their brand when they want to buy.
Commercial disputes can prove time-consuming, stressful and expensive, but having robust legal agreements can help to prevent them from occurring.
Whether your business owns or rents premises, your legal liabilities can be substantial. Commercial property law is complex, but you can avoid common pitfalls.
With information and sound advice, living up to your legal responsibilities to safeguard your employees, customers and visitors need not be difficult or costly.
As information technology continues to evolve, legislation must also change. It affects everything from data protection and online selling to internet policies for employees.
Intellectual property (IP) isn't solely relevant to larger businesses or those involved in developing innovative new products: all products have IP.
Knowing how and when you plan to sell or relinquish control of your business can help you to make better decisions and achieve the best possible outcome.
From bereavement, wills, inheritance, separation and divorce to selling a house, personal injury and traffic offences, learn more about your personal legal rights.
Being a shareholder, company owner or partner in a successful business can be an enviable position. But it also brings with it a range of challenges, from wanting the business to be successful to ensuring that you enjoy your fair share of the returns. Other key issues can include succession planning, which is covered in the ‘Exit strategies' section of the Law Donut.
Identifying what you are trying to achieve and anticipating potential problems can help you reach your objectives.
A company's articles of association typically set out basic rules for how a company operates: for example, how directors are appointed and what rights shareholders have. You can use the articles of association or a separate shareholders agreement to cover other key issues that are important to you.
Key issues in a shareholder agreement can include overall business strategy, how management decisions are taken and who has responsibility in different areas, what will happen if the business needs to raise additional financing, for example.
The articles of association or shareholders' agreement can also govern how the company is controlled, such as what voting rights shareholders have and how directors take decisions. In private companies, the articles of association or a shareholders' agreement often include restrictions on share transfers aimed at preventing outside investors taking control.
If company ownership is shared between shareholders who work in the business and passive investors, you may also want to consider issuing different classes of shares with different rights. For example, family businesses have sometimes issued non-voting shares to external investors.
Your rights as a minority shareholder are protected to some extent by the Companies Act and other laws and legal precedents. For example, directors are required to treat shareholders equitably.
In practice, minority shareholders can find themselves disadvantaged, particularly where ownership and management control are concentrated with another individual or group. Again, a shareholders' agreement or the articles of association can provide useful protection. For example, minority shareholders' consent might be required for transfers of significant assets, remuneration above agreed levels or contracts between the company and any of its' directors or shareholders.
Similar considerations apply to partnerships. Under partnership law, unless agreed otherwise partners have a right to equal shares in profits and an equal say in how the business is managed.
A written partnership agreement can set out how the business is to be managed and what partnership rights each partner has.