Small Business Law: Why You Need a Lawyer for Your Business Security
If you are a business owner, there are many reasons that you may want to consider hiring an attorney. Many people think that the only time that an attorney is when they have a legal problem. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Legal help and advice are essential. It is crucial to be able to have an attorney at your fingertips when you need it if you own a business. This is because there are a host of different issues and problems that might occur as a business owner. Below are some of the situations that you might face which would require legal help.
Some Common Reasons You need a Corporate Lawyer
1- Tax Issues or Legal Problems with Your Business
You need an attorney when you are filing your taxes so that you can get the tax breaks you need as well as make sure that you are within the confines of the law regarding taxes. Also, you may need to change your status from sole proprietor to S-corporation or other legal business statuses. You will need an attorney for this as well to make it legal.
Most states including the state of New Jersey require that you have an appointed legal representative who will be in charge of your business status and be sure that you pay all dues and fees applicable to your business status on time. This representative could be an attorney in your state who looks after your business by filing the proper paperwork on the state and regional levels. While an accountant can do some of this, you still need a representative who knows the law to protect you from penalties and fees that you might owe for failing to follow through.
2- Problems with a Client
Another reason that you may need an experienced attorney if you operate a business in New Jersey. You may have issues when a client sues you or claims that you did not do what you said you were going to do as a business owner. There’s a certain degree of responsibility that falls to you if you produce products that inadvertently hurt someone or if they have a legitimate complaint about a product or service that you rendered. As long as you have done your due diligence to ensure safety and compliance, you will be okay. But you may need an attorney to represent you as someone takes you to court.
3. Unpaid debts or bankruptcy
If you are a business owner and you have a C-corporation or S-corporation status, the law sees you as independent from your business. This is an advantage for you but only if you know the law and how it can help you. A good business attorney or corporate lawyer can help you understand your obligations regarding unpaid debts and help you protect your individual assets since they should be considered separate and apart from your business assets.
A corporate lawyer often works to protect both your business and your assets and monies so that clients cannot get to these in the event they take you to court for unpaid debts.
4. Criminal offenses
Whether you are a business owner or an individual, you might be charged with some criminal offense at some time. No one likes to think about this nightmare, but sometimes it does happen. Everything from a parking violation to Tax Evasion could be charged to you through a series of circumstances whether any of it is true or not.
Sometimes people even get framed by others who have vindictive reasons for claiming that you did something illegal when you did not. This is where a business and criminal attorney comes into your rescue to build a case about your innocence and to show that you could not or would not have committed the crime.
5. Civil litigation
Civil litigation does not involve crimes, but it can be serious regarding the amount of money that you could pay in damages to others who say you have personally injured them in some way.
Personal injury or neglect cases are the most common, but a case could also involve libel or slander if you work in the publishing industry or a similar business. Personal injury claims could result from products that you sold them that was defective that caused an injury or cases involving negligence regarding the way you do business and other matters.
Even when you are innocent of these accusations, you must have a reasonable defense attorney at your side to be able to prove that you were not guilty of the crimes. Good attorneys will tell you that the US Constitution guarantees you a right to face your accuser and to have due process of law. Even in a civil case, you have individual rights and responsibilities that your corporate lawyer can inform you about. They can also handle any paperwork or contracts that are needed to make things legal when dealing with employees, vendors, and customers.
Finding an Attorney in New Jersey
If you do not have a business attorney for either civil or criminal litigation, contact the excellent civil and criminal defense attorneys at David Schlendorf Law Firm (DTS) at Toms River New Jersey. David and his assistant attorney, Ioana Enescu can help you with any legal issues that you need including taxes and tax preparation, tax and accounting problems, civil lawsuits or civil actions, corporate issues, securing your assets, and even estate planning.
Don’t Wait
It is important to remember that you don’t need to wait until you have a problem to seek attorney help. Secure the help of an attorney for advice when you need it before you have a big problem. Then you will know who to call if you do run into a legal situation that needs attorney help. There is no fee for the consultation at DTS Law Firm, so visit with David ryona today and rest easier tomorrow.