When someone is forming their own startup company it is a very exciting time. They can’t wait to open up the doors and start doing business, they dream of all the great things they and their company will do once they get started. But before any of those dreams can come true, they must put the right contracts in place to ensure the success of their business and make sure it is legally protected.
Business contracts are no easy thing to draft up or review for the majority of business owners. All the owner wants to do is get their business off the ground and start running the operations. But without these contracts in place, it could harm or ultimately be the reason why your business fails. That is why it is so important to hire a business contract attorney to help you with these documents.
Types of Business Contracts that are Needed to form a Startup.
There are many different business contracts that one might need to form a startup, some include but are not limited to:
- Lease agreements
- Partnership agreement
- Franchise agreement
- Employment contracts
- Noncompete agreement
- Bill of sale
- Purchase orders
- Warranties or limited warranties
- Nondisclosure agreement
- Agreement to sell the business
- Business contract review
As you can see, there are a plethora of contracts that need to be put in place before opening the doors of your business. A business contracts lawyer can help you draft and review these documents to ensure you and your company are legally protected.
Let us just take commercial leasing agreements for starters since this is one of the most important agreements to your business’s success. The reason they are so important because this is the agreement that will establish where your company is located. If you are a store, you want to make sure you are visible to people walking and driving by. Maybe even have a large window display to attract potential business or the perfect spot downtown. If you are starting a corporate type of company, you will need a space that is inviting to your employees when they walk in the door and also have enough room to house everyone comfortably.
Commercial leasing agreements are usually drafted by the property owner, which entails the terms to be heavily sided to their liking. A business contracts lawyer can determine if the terms are fair and negotiate to help get more favourable terms for your business. One clause a business contracts lawyer can get in place is an exclusive use clause that mandate that only one tenant on the property can run a certain type of business. If you were opening up an accounting firm, this clause will ensure the property owner cannot lease another space on the property to another accounting firm. This helps limit your competition, so you don’t have to worry about your neighbour next door taking your potential customers.
Another clause in a commercial leasing agreement that is sometimes overlooked by business owners is the option for the landlord to terminate the lease early. Imagine that you just opened your doors and things are going fantastic. The location is perfect, and you are getting a great business, everything is up and running smoothly. Then only to find out the landlord is trying to terminate the agreement months later. This can be very costly to business owners as they would have to pick everything up and start over at a new location. A business contracts attorney can negotiate these terms and make sure you won’t be left high and dry months down the road.
Another important contract that must be put in place is employment contracts. Every business owner wants to have a great relationship with their employees and thinks none of them would ever do the company any harm. Though, almost every business owner that employs workers will eventually experience a dispute with an employee. There are many possible issues that can arise with employees that would entail a dispute. Some of the most common are:
- Allegations of unlawful discrimination or harassment under Title VII
- Allegations of wage or hour violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
- Allegations of wrongful termination or unlawful retaliation
- Allegations of health or safety violations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA)
- Whistle-blowing
- Violations of non-compete agreements
- Misappropriation of trade secrets
As you can see, your company could be potentially at risk for many different dispute possibilities with your employees. Having the right business contracts lawyer draft up these contracts before a dispute arises can be the difference between your business’s success or ultimate failure.
Hire a Business Contracts Lawyer Before You Form your Startup
The right business contracts lawyer will make sure that you are legally protected before you form your startup There are so many contracts that need to be put in place before you open the doors if you are thinking about forming your own startup, reach out to a business contracts lawyer today to see how they can help.