Growing Your Business? Five Legal Tips You Should Know

When growing your business, there are many considerations like marketing, sales, investment, and product-market fit. But are there legal things to consider when it comes to business? Suresh Law says yes.

Suresh Sriskandarajah is a technology and business lawyer with Suresh Law and is no stranger to entrepreneurship. He’s worked at boutique firms in corporate, technology and administrative law, having worked for leading companies such as Amazon, Microsoft and Blackberry and has launched three ventures, mentored dozens of startups and was a recipient of the CIBC Leaders in Entrepreneurship Award.

Here Suresh shares his top five legal tips for growing your business:

Have solid contracts in place to safeguard all areas of your business. 

When growing a business, it’s essential to cover all ground by having employment agreements and handbooks in place while recruiting new talent. When the company is taking on more than one shareholder, it’s recommended that you have a well-drafted shareholders agreement to discuss all of their rights and responsibilities. Service contracts could also be customized for key clients depending on the nature of the business. 

Protect your intellectual property

As the company grows, it’s essential to ensure that the business actually owns all the intellectual property (IP). Founders, employees and third-party developers can sign IP agreements to transfer their rights to the company. This is something potential investors and other stakeholders usually look for. 

Maintain corporate records

Organization is essential as your business grows. Key meetings, decisions and changes to the corporate structure should all be documented. Registers containing shareholders, directors, and officers’ information should also be kept up to date as required by law. 

Mitigate risk 

As you make changes to your business to help grow the company, incorporate any need for legal work into your budget. Mitigating any legal risk is vital. Obtaining expert advice when seeking investments, growing your team and forming strategic partnerships could pay off in the long run by avoiding any potential legal hassles.

Obtain business and legal advisory to develop your growth plans.

During the development stage of your company, reflect on the goals and state of your business. Appointing a business and legal advisory group to help you make the crucial decisions can be beneficial in leading you down the best path toward your goals. 

For more information on Suresh Law, visit https://suresh.law

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