COMMERCIAL LAW GUIDE
Whatever the size of your business, you can always benefit from having the professional advice from a commercial law specialist. Commercial law specialists are qualified to support you and your business in a range of ways that help to ensure your business is profitable and continues to make money from your goods/services. These specialists are trained to understand the rights, responsibilities and conduct of both people and businesses who engage in trade, merchandise and commerce. To help you to understand commercial law and the ways a solicitor specialising in commercial law can help your business, we have put together this guide.
I have a corporate law solicitor, can’t they help?
No, although commercial law and corporate law are closely related, they do govern different areas of the business. Corporate law is focused on the formation of a business, things like shareholder rights, management, mergers, raising capital, and any else related to how the business is structured and run. Commercial law, on the other hand, governs and regulates business transactions and focuses on day-to-day operations. Commercial law is far broader and incorporates a number of other laws, including contract law, consumer law, intellectual property law, employment law and international transactions and trade.
Can you help me patent my idea?
Yes, a commercial law specialist is qualified in intellectual property and ensuring that this is protected, they can help with patents, copyright, and trademarks. A commercial law specialist will be able to review and give you advice on anything from your business or product name, branding, designs, and even processes. Protecting your business like this prevents other companies from copying and exploiting your business and/or products/services.
Another business is using my trademark, what can I do?
After you have registered a trademark, whether it is a company logo, a product name, a tag line or anything else, you are able to take legal action if someone:
- uses your trademark without your permission
- uses your trademark for commercial gain
- uses identical marks for goods or services that are similar
- produces counterfeits of your goods/service
If someone uses your trademark, we recommend you take legal action as soon as possible, to avoid your company and/or products/services being negatively impacted.
Do I need terms and conditions of trade?
Yes, this is one of the first documents a company should set up before it starts trading. The terms and conditions you have in place will help you to:
Terms and conditions are important because they:
- ensure you are complying with the law
- minimise legal disputes and court action against your business
- help you to enforce agreements you have made
- ensure you cover everything, even the less obvious
- manage expectations
- help you to provide good customer service
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Do I need contracts with my vendors?
It is always a good idea to have contracts drawn up between your business and your vendors. These contracts will help to protect you (and your vendor), ensuring you understand the each other’s responsibilities. The contract should detail the transaction taking, including: the price, service/product, and things like delivery.
Can I write contracts myself?
You can write the contracts yourself, however, they may not be legally binding and may not actually provide you any protection. Contracts have to be written in a specific way, they must include certain information, avoid ambiguity and comply to the standards of contract writing. If you don’t have any legal experience and aren’t sure what you’re doing, you may not do it right.
summary
To succeed in business you need to manage your risks and commitments, protect your business and products/services. For this you need agreements and contracts, you need trademarks, you need predetermined trading terms, and for this you need a commercial law specialist.
Commercial law specialists have a broader understanding of law, specialising in commercial law, they also understand contract law, helping you to write the needed contracts and agreements. With their consumer law knowledge and understanding of international transactions and trade, they can also help you to negotiate terms on your contracts and protect your clients from liability.
When it comes to protecting your business and products/services, a commercial law specialist can also help you to apply for trademarks, they can assess your business/product and provide advice, as well as complete the necessary paperwork for you.
Another area commercial law specialists can help you is with employment and labour. With their experience in this area they can help to resolve disputes, write up contracts with employees and ensure you are complying to the law, to protect and serve your employees to the legal standard.
The main advantage some businesses find with having a commercial law solicitor is the peace of mind that if any legal issues were to arise, their business will be protected and immediate action will be taken.
If you would like to discuss your commercial business or would like a free no obligation quote, please call one our expert team members today.
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