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Small Business Consulting

We take great pleasure in working with both individuals considering pursuing their dream – starting their very own business, as well as young businesses facing challenges on the road to growth, stability and profitability.

Start Ups
A first issue for all individuals starting a new business is choice of entity – the opportunity to consider governance issues and preferences, sources of financing and investors, management and tax matters. Considering these issues in a thoughtful, deliberate fashion can help to maximize your objectives while minimizing taxes and unnecessary costs at both the entity level and for the owners personally. While we use paralegals to assist us, we believe the initial meeting to discuss your objectives and review your options cannot be delegated; you will always meet with an experienced business attorney to discuss, review and plan for establishing your business entity. Anything short of good planning could jeopardize your business objectives.

Beyond Choice of Entity
Choice of entity is only the starting point for your new business. There may be leases to negotiate, both for premises and equipment, bank or other financing matters to resolve, a franchise agreement to pore through and dissect, employment and confidentiality agreements to consider, and more. The list of the myriad of issues which a new or existing business may, and likely will face, is long and varied. We bring a wide variety of background to counseling small business clients, allowing us to guide you through the maze of laws, regulations and issues in an economical manner. Our goals have never been, and will never be, a “one shot” representation. Our goal is to represent our business clients for the long term.

Established Companies
Once a new business is established, we continue to provide ongoing advice for the wide variety of legal issues which may be confronted by a growing business. Employment contracts and restrictive covenants, financing, corporate governance and shareholder agreements, including Buy-Sell Agreements which allow a company to remain “close” while providing liquidity to the owners, general contracts, acquisitions, mergers and divestitures, are just some of the issues a small business may need to address. Read more about our business services under Corporate Law.

This is a sampling of the small business law services provided to small- and medium-sized businesses:

Small Business Consulting Articles

Wayfair Tax Supports Tax Fairness

Wayfair Tax Supports Tax Fairness

The Chesterfield Regional Chamber of Commerce (Chesterfield, Missouri) was asked to weigh in on the issue of the City of Chesterfield applying sales taxes to online purchases from out-of-state vendors. First, a little history. For decades, the United States Supreme...

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Corporation vs. LLC – Is the Decision Any Clearer?

Corporation vs. LLC – Is the Decision Any Clearer?

For years, it seems that choice of entity has been given, at best, only passing attention. While everyone contemplating starting a business has heard of corporations, that entity is viewed as their father’s entity, not the newer, hipper limited liability company...

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Resources for Navigating the Impact of the Coronavirus

Resources for Navigating the Impact of the Coronavirus

These are trying times for employees and employers alike in just about every industry imaginable. Disrupted work, adjusting to work from home (for the lucky ones!), uncertainty about how long stay-at-home and social distancing orders will last, outright business...

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