Legal fundamentals you need to be aware of
Do you know your small business legal fundamentals?
As part of the $4 million Women in Business Program, the Port Adelaide Football Club has partnered with the Office for Small and Family Business to deliver HERStory: Business Collective - networking and professional development opportunities helping women-led businesses achieve their growth ambitions.
Kicking off last month, the first session featured guest speakers from DW Fox Tucker Lawyers, Special Counsel Evyenia Walton and Senior Associate Helene Chryssidis, who gave practical advice on setting up and scaling a business.
Whether you a manufacturing a product or delivering a service, legally protecting your brand is critical in establishing long-term protectable rights. Make sure you have copyrights, trademarks, patents, and ownership of all your assets and original creations such as designs, ideas, words, imagery or video to maximise the protection of your intellectual property.
As a director you are responsible for the management of your company. You also have legal duties to your business. When these duties are breached – whether innocently, negligently, or deliberately – a director is at risk of being held personally liable. To mitigate the risks, make sure you know your legal obligations and duties under Australian law.
Choosing a business structure will be one of the most important decisions you make when starting your business. The structure you use will have a flow-on effect on everything you do as a business – from hiring employees to having the ability to scale up as the business grows. When considering a business structure, think about the advantages and disadvantages each type offers so you can set up your business correctly from the start.
When you’re a business owner or company director many things can go wrong. When they do, your assets – both business and personal – are at risk.
Putting legal strategies in place can safeguard your wealth in the unfortunate event of a lawsuit or creditor claims. To protect your assets, make sure you choose the right business structure, transfer assets to spouse’s name, get business insurance, use trusts and other entities and speak to an expert.
Why does your company exist? What do you want to accomplish? When pulling together your mission statement, make sure it captures the core of who your company is and why it exists. A solid mission statement should inspire employees, retain customers, and attract investors.