Business Growth: Selecting the Right Legal Expert for Your Business

This concludes our series on choosing the right legal entity for your business. I am not an attorney. I urge you to consult a legal expert.

We have been examining ways to legally structure your business. In each post I encouraged you to consult with a legal expert to establish your entity. Several options exist to help you find the right attorney for your business. Business attorneys handle different specialties within the law. The specialties that typically affect your business may include:

• Contract lawyers prepare contracts & review contracts submitted to you by clients
• Business lawyers help you find the best way to organize your business
• Real estate lawyers help you negotiate the best leases, purchases, and contracts
• Tax attorneys work with accountants on legal issues related to taxes & licenses
• Intellectual property lawyers help with media, design or other creative businesses

Where to Find an Attorney

You can find an attorney through various sources. These include:

• Talking to other business owners about their experience with attorneys
• Call the bar association in your state
• Consult with the nearest Small Business Development Center
• Ask a Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) volunteer

Lawyers.com shares 12 questions to ask an attorney:

The Lawyer's Experience

• How long have you been practicing in this field or area of law?
• Have you ever handled matters like mine before?

Managing the Case

• What are the possible outcomes of my case?
• What are my alternatives in resolving the matter?
• Approximately how long will it take to resolve?
• Do you recommend mediation or arbitration?
• How will you let me know about what's happening in my case?
• What kind of approach will you take - aggressive and unyielding, or will you work to reach a reasonable settlement?

Legal Fees & Costs

• What are your rates and how often will you bill me?
• What is a ballpark figure for the total bill, including fees and expenses?

Who Will Do the Work?

• Who else in your law office will work on my case?
• Can junior attorneys or paralegals in the office handle some of legal work at a lower rate than what you charge?

Join me on Saturday when we explore miscellaneous legal issues related to your business