BUSINESS

COMPANY COMMERCIAL

When you set up and run a business, you will need all the documentation in place as soon as possible. This protects the owners and assets of your business as well as your customers.

Whether you need a complex partnership or shareholders agreements or merely simple standard terms of business, we will give you practical advice in a personal manner.

Whether you are starting out, expanding or selling, we will achieve the best result for you and your business. We specialise in advising smaller businesses and we continue to advise many that we helped to establish.

Starting a Business

When you start your business, we will give you advice over whether or not you should set up as a sole trader, partnership or a limited liability partnership or incorporating as a limited liability company.

This will affect your tax position and personal liability. Set-up costs, ongoing administration, publicity and perception are also likely to be important.

Buying and Selling a Business

If you want to buy a company or a business, you first need to know what you are buying. You will also want the right to claim against the seller if you get something you hadn't bargained for.

Conversely, if you are selling, you want as little residual liability as possible so that you can use the sale proceeds for other projects without having to worry about claims by the buyer.

We will guide you through and advise you on all aspects of the acquisition or disposal of a company or a business, including:

• Any pre-sale or pre-acquisition reorganisations or hive-downs that are necessary
• Any financing and security issues
• Preparing heads of terms, exclusivity agreements and confidentiality agreements
• Assisting in the information-gathering and due diligence process
• Drafting and negotiating the sale and purchase agreement and ancillary documents
• Earn-outs, management buy-outs and private equity/venture capital investment

By providing a combination of top quality legal advice and balanced commercial input, we ensure the process is as smooth as possible, letting you focus on the issues that really matter.