Establishing a name for yourself, attracting customers and competing with competitors all make running a business a tough proposition. Having to deal with legal issues can take it beyond the point of overload.
Not only can legal problems be highly stressful. They can also ruin all your hard work up to that point. You could face large financial penalties which wipe out your profits, and face considerable harm to your reputation which costs you current and future customers.
Therefore, being proactive about preventing legal problems is a key business strategy. To begin with, you need to understand exactly where those problems could come from.
In short: Anybody could be a potential source of legal issues
Almost everyone you deal with could decide to take legal action against you. Most won’t of course, so here are the key areas to be wary of:
Your employees
Employees have a lot of legal rights, and as an employer, you must go about things in accordance with both state and federal laws. It’s easy to make errors if you are not aware of all the guidelines you must comply with. If you are not sure about your obligations concerning things such as pregnancy rights, reasonable accommodations for people’s disabilities and anti-harassment policies, it is wise to get legal help.
Your customers and suppliers
The exchange of goods for money needs to be governed by contracts. Make sure you have well-thought-out contracts for all such deals and are aware of consumer law when dealing with the general public.
The authorities
Some businesses need to deal with a lot more red tape than others. Yet even one missing permit could cause major problems for your company and lead to complications and fines that can forestall your growth.
Running a business is as much about legal compliance as entrepreneurship, so remember there is help available. A proactive approach can help you avoid problems that cut into your bottom line.