Website design By BotEap.comI get this question all the time. Mostly this question comes from people I meet who own and operate a small business and have always done things themselves. The business may have a few employees, own some assets, and is quite profitable. When I talk to them, I always hear “I really don’t have any legal problems, why do I need a lawyer? Business is good and my employees love me.” Well when I hear this I know what I’m getting myself into.

Website design By BotEap.comThe first thing I ask these people is: how is your business structured? LLC? Corporation? Once we determine that answer, the next questions are: Do you have an operating agreement if you are an LLC or bylaws if you are a corporation? Do you have annual meeting minutes? Seven times out of ten people answer “no” to these questions. That is why they need a business attorney. If they are not following corporate formalities and organizational protocols and someone would sue the company, the possibility of that plaintiff lifting the corporate veil and attacking the owner’s personal assets increases exponentially.

Website design By BotEap.comAnother question I ask is: do you have written contracts for the work you do and the businesses you are involved in? About 4 out of 10 say no. Again, this is why you need a business lawyer. The handshake agreement does not work in today’s society. Everything must be in writing, not because you can’t trust anyone, it’s because you need to protect your rights. If they don’t have contracts they use or have written them themselves, you can bet they’ll spend incredible amounts of money settling disputes that could have been avoided by working with a business attorney in the first place.

Website design By BotEap.comFinally, I often ask if they understand the various federal and state labor laws that govern the employer-employee relationship. Most respond with “Pennsylvania is an at-will employee and I can fire anyone at any time.” This is what I call a time bomb. Yes, it is true that Pennsylvania recognizes at-will employment; however, there are several laws that provide protection to employees against discrimination, unfair treatment, unfair wages, etc. More often than not, these business owners have no idea what they don’t know and end up doing something that costs them ten or thousands of dollars to figure out. That is why they need a business attorney.

Website design By BotEap.comSo, as you can see, there are many reasons to work with a business lawyer when you own a business from the start. People incorrectly assume that the only time they will need a lawyer is if they are sued. However, a good business lawyer will help you run your business in a way that limits the reasons why you could be sued at a fraction of the cost it will cost to litigate and resolve a dispute in the future.