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Summary: True story: as a child, my mother told me that because I always argued I may as well be an attorney. fast forward to my early 20's someone called me batman as an insult due to my strong sense of justice (I love batman). all jokes aside- Presently, I am attending La Verne University in order to complete my bachelor's in criminology and criminal justice. After, I plan to attend a law school. I am almost 7 years in experience as a paralegal. I have pre-litigation and litigation experience. I love discovery, research, and investigating. when I'm not working or working on college matters, I am either reading a comic, watching anime, or playing video games. I am super friendly, bubbly, and have often been told I brighten up rooms. I look forward to chatting! 🫶
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Doing business often means completing complex transactions, signing contracts, and meeting regulatory guidelines for your industry. Whether you have a small boutique shop in the Arts District or have plans for an accounting service in Beverly Hills, you need to retain a top-notch business lawyer to help handle all of the details.
You may not realize all of the bits of legal advice that go into a successful and low-liability business. From negotiating lease agreements to providing advice about corporate structures, a business law attorney has a lot to offer.
This guide provides an in-depth look at what services a business lawyer might offer, legal issues that might impact small businesses, and how to find the right attorney for your Los Angeles company.
A business lawyer is a well-rounded legal practitioner with experience in and outside of the courthouse. Lawyers that specialize in business applications help anticipate issues and offer legal advice tailored to each business customer. Below are some categories in which you might need legal advice, whether you're starting a new Los Angeles business or have an established reputation.
A business law attorney can assist with everything from drawing up contracts to getting the best outcome when income tax season rolls around. When you hire a business lawyer, you protect your business from frivolous lawsuits and government oversight.
The business lawyer you work with can convey an instant reputation boost. If you have a well-known contract lawyer on retainer, it advertises that your business takes negotiation and contracts seriously. Where you get your legal advice can improve how other businesses view your company. The right lawyer might help you secure loans, network with potential investors, and put you in touch with a variety of third-party options for support services, such as accounting or IT.
Depending on your industry, you might need a variety of contracts ready to go. Here are 10 common types of contracts that most small businesses need at some point:
While you may not need all of these contracts, it's likely that some will be part of your ongoing strategy. For example, if you intend to work with a venture capital firm, a confidentiality and invention assignment agreement and an NDA might be required for your employees.
The state of California and Los Angeles have passed sweeping employment laws aimed at increasing protections for workers, while the changes to employee classification affecting thousands of contract workers has taken center stage in the news. Updates contain dozens of other provisions that impact everything from what is considered a discriminatory hiring practice to office design that includes spaces for breastfeeding mothers.
A small business lawyer operating in Los Angeles County stays up-to-date on the new employment laws and how they may affect your business. You can get proactive tips on how to remain in compliance with laws and information about any possible exemptions for small businesses.
You may need to change your hiring practices to better comply with antidiscrimination policies or hire more full-time workers and fewer contractors. Getting legal advice about your business model can be extremely helpful.
Immigrants make up a huge chunk of the population in Los Angeles and nearly half of the local business owners, according to the American Immigration Council. While the vast majority of these residents came into the U.S. legally and with all required documentation, understanding immigration law is a must when hiring in Los Angeles. Expired work visas, corporate sponsorship, and legal obligations for an employer all play a role when working with immigrants.
Tech companies routinely hire from overseas to expand their options. CompTIA recently estimated that approximately 700,000 IT jobs are unfilled, using data from the most recently released Employment Situation Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The challenge of finding domestic talent is a large part of why Los Angeles companies may reach out to top candidates across the pond. Some of the top reasons to work with a business lawyer with immigration experience include:
Even with a recent update to the tax code, business filings are often complex and layered when it comes to a tax return. How a business is organized determines what tax documents need filing, along with what deductions might be legal. Are you a sole proprietor, or is your business incorporated? If it's incorporated, how did you handle incorporation? There are four types of corporations in the United States, and each handles taxes differently.
Whether you have unfiled returns, an upcoming audit with the IRS, or questions about how to comply with tax laws while minimizing your expenses, a small business attorney can be helpful.
Intellectual property is often the most valuable part of a business's portfolio. Consider that some valuations put intangible assets, such as the Coca-Cola brand, at a valuation of $73.1 billion — and that's on top of the more than $37 billion the company earned in 2019. Splashing the Coca-Cola logo on a product gives it tremendous market penetration and consumer trust, so that logo is worth a lot.
Your logo is also valuable, along with other content, products, and services developed by your business. If you own a hair salon, your list of customized color blends is proprietary information. If you sell merchandise with your branding on it, that is a way to directly monetize your intellectual property.
If you develop software to support your network of delivery drivers or create a line of kid-friendly motorized vehicles, you have invested in intellectual property.
Here are the four major areas of intellectual property and a brief overview of legal protections.
Registering trademarks enable you to protect your brand identity. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, "A trademark is a brand name. A trademark or service mark includes any word, name, symbol, device, or any combination used or intended to be used to identify and distinguish the goods/services of one seller or provider from those of others and to indicate the source of the goods/services."
Registering a trademark is a great way to notify other businesses of the mark you use for your brand. It helps protect against unauthorized use. A small business lawyer can help you through the application process.
A copyright protects original writing, including novels, plays, articles, music, poetry, and even computer software or architecture. If you author a training guide for your employees, it will fall under copyright protection. In general, there is nothing special you need to do to own the copyright, but when someone else uses your work, you do need to defend the copyright. When you need to mount a creditable legal defense, it's a good idea to consult with a business lawyer.
A trademark protects your brand, and copyright protects creative works, but a patent is there to protect inventions and ideas. Not all inventions are eligible for patent protection, but when you can opt for a patent, you get some of the most stringent intellectual property defenses out there. The patent application process can be long, grueling, and expensive.
To get a granted patent, the invention must be:
Patents are broken into three categories:
Some research before filing a patent application is generally a good idea, and a small business attorney is often the best choice as the researcher.
Unlike other types of intellectual property, there is no government registration or agency responsible for monitoring trade secrets, but trade secrets are protected under the law. The Economic Espionage Act and the more recent Defend Trade Secrets Act both provide legal recourse when a trade secret is illegally shared, stolen, or made public. For legal protection as a trade secret, the information must:
Hire a business lawyer to explain what legal protections you might need for specific types of intellectual property.
Finding the right legal representation often depends on word-of-mouth. Referrals may be your best source for a short list of potential law firms, but you may not have anyone on your contacts list. To help find and choose legal representation, you might start with a quick, local search. Here are some of the most important things to consider before choosing a business lawyer.
If you're in the early planning stages for a new start-up, you might only need occasional advice and help with contracts. If your business is rapidly expanding and growing, it might be time to invest more in your legal team.
A firm that rarely litigates may not be to your advantage if you have a pending lawsuit against your company. When looking for a business lawyer, it's important to seek out a firm that offers the types of legal help you might need.
Some firms have partners that are licensed in multiple states and may have federal bar memberships. For companies with patents and other nationally protected IP, it may be a good idea to work with a business law attorney who can argue in federal courts.