Have you ever thought whether you need an involvement of a business lawyer in business issues and matters? A lawyer is a person who can help you in all the matters of your business, whether it is the incorporation business, framing the contracts or representing you in litigation if required. But is there a compulsion of hiring a business lawyer every time or you can save some bucks and handle the legal processes on your own?
This article will focus on giving some guidelines about what are the issues that you can handle on your own and what are the ones in which you will be needing help and demands for retaining a lawyer.
Legal Matters that you can handle on your Own:
This is not a very long and exhaustive list, but it includes the things that you can handle on your own. Every business is unique, and it requires a consultation with a lawyer in the initial stages of it’s set up.
It helps you in having the knowledge of how complex your needs are and how you should proceed forward on these issues.
- Claiming the trademark of your business:
The process of giving a name to your business is not as simple as it sounds to be. You just can’t pick a name and start your business with it. If you plan to name your company by some other name, you will need a “Doing Business as” name. You will also have to check whether the URL you choose has already been registered or is available. This can be done on your own by checking WHOIS database that has the lists of the domain names registered.
You do not have to consult a lawyer while picking a trademark. The US patents and the Trademark office makes use of the tools that helps in searching the trademarks registered.
When you should retain a Lawyer:
- Filing a patent:
Filing a patent is the most difficult job. Not only is it expensive but it demands a lot of time. It can even take years to get a patent approved; that is the reason we find so many “patent pending” messages in the marketplace. Consulting a patent attorney helps you in correct evaluation of your brand and the product and figures out what rights you can ask for and achieve.
- Litigation:
Many of the business owners face the litigation process at least once in their lifetime. A lawyer deals with the lawsuits by the former or the current customers and the employees. The harassment and the discrimination cases are also dealt with the business lawyer.
- Selling and buying a business:
There is no business if you don’t deal with the other businesses. When it comes to dealing with other owners and the customers, you will need a person who negotiates well with them. A business lawyer helps in making the business agreements and negotiating deals with the fellow business owners and much more.
It is important that you figure out when you will need a lawyer so that you do not spend your cash reserve somewhere that does not need it. Consulting a business lawyer and hiring one can help you deal with a lot of stressful situations and make your life a little comfortable.