Are You a Business Owner?
Is there anything that better encompasses the American dream more than owning your own business? This is the land of opportunity, after all, and what offers more opportunity and independence than taking on your own enterprise?
You have done the market research and know that there is demand for what you’ve got to offer. You likely already have a dream team assembled. You’ve done the hard work, and you are ready to open your doors and welcome your first customers. You’ve even got a disaster plan with the right insurance to protect you, your team, and your assets should disaster strike.
But what if disaster comes in a form you haven’t planned for? Legal disasters can cripple a business, destroy morale, and cost more than your business can generate, resulting in the untimely closure of your business.
How can businesses in Georgia protect themselves from legal risks? Let’s find out!
What Are Common Legal Pitfalls Businesses Face?
It is important first to learn what to look out for in order to protect yourself and your business from legal turmoil.
Legal troubles can fall into several categories with varying levels of severity.
Administrative Legal Troubles
These legal issues tend to be the Achilles’ heel of a company. These administrative issues can include failure to pay the taxes you owe, operating without the proper business licenses or without staying in compliance with your business licenses, breaking a legal contract, and employment law violations.
When a business is hit with one or more of these legal issues, it can have a cascading effect that can ultimately lead to its failure, either because of the hit to public image, the cost of making things right, or the legal expenses that can occur.
Liability Legal Troubles
Sometimes, legal issues can arise because of the people you invite into your business. When you operate a business, you are responsible for the safety of your customers, employees, and other guests.
Things like slip and fall accidents, employee injuries, and damage you or your business cause to the property of others, all of these can land you in the hot seat of a liability lawsuit. Damages that result from losing a liability lawsuit can be substantial, sometimes even enough to destroy a small business and even have a major impact on the owners of that business if they do not properly protect themselves or their assets!
How Can a Business Protect Itself?
Just like when you planned for your business’s success, you can take steps to prepare for your legal protections, as well.
A few things a business owner can do to protect their business from legal troubles may include the following:
Business License Compliance
It is important that your business remains in compliance with all necessary business licenses required for it to function. This can be something as simple as renewing your business licenses, but it can become more complex if your business works with hazardous materials, explosives, or across state lines. You and your business can create a business license plan or even a department with a select few employees who are responsible for maintaining compliance standards.
Employee and Client Safety
Making efforts to create a safe place for your employees to work and for your clients to visit is integral to protecting yourself from legal fallout. This can be as simple as having an action plan regarding slip and trip hazards. Identifying the potential for injury can help protect yourself from liability lawsuits.
Practice Above Board Bookkeeping
It is important to ensure your bookkeeping is thorough and consistent. This includes paying your taxes on time, accurately tracking your income and expenses, and meeting the terms of your contracts.
Properly tracking employee hours and pay can protect you from employee law pitfalls. Tracking your own pay is important when you operate as a corporation.
How Can Business Owners Protect Themselves?
An additional action a business owner can take to protect themselves is forming their business into a corporation, which is one of the most effective forms of protection.
Corporations exist in many forms, from limited liability corporations (LLC), to alphabet corporations, such as S, C, and B corporations and non-profits. Each corporation has its different intended design with varying requirements and regulations, but the main purpose of most corporations is to separate personal assets from those of the company.
When you, as a business owner, go through the proper channels to turn your company into a corporation, you can rest assured knowing that should disaster befall your business, your personal assets and your personal life will be protected. While you will still need to deal with the disaster that has affected your business, you can do so with a clear head, knowing that you are protected.
When Should You Hire an Attorney?
You wouldn’t get commercial insurance after a catastrophe, would you? Why would you wait until you need a lawyer to run something by them?
When you work with an experienced business lawyer, you can feel confident knowing you are taking the proper steps to protect yourself, your business, and your family.
Do you have a question about the wording in a contract? Contact Oliver Hughes LLC. Want to protect yourself by forming an LLC? Speak with our experienced team to make sure all of the bookkeeping is above par. Need help with business license compliance? Call 770-230-1447 to schedule your obligation-free consultation.
Starting a business in the land of opportunity is truly an exciting time. Don’t let excitement turn into regret by not covering all of your bases, commercial or legal.
