Business Law Palm Beach

Most businesses formed in Florida over the past decade or more are limited liability companies or LLCs. Thus, the question often arises as to whether these LLCs need an operating agreement . The history of the LLC in Florida Before the LLC, the options for business owners were the partnership or the corporation. Partnerships offered little to no liability protection for the owners. Corporations offered liability protection, but only if certain corporate formalities were respected like documented shareholder meetings. Few small businesses complied with those corporate formalities simply because they had only one or maybe two shareholders. As a consequence, many corporations lost the liability protections of the corporation. The LLC was created to fill the gap between the two and to provide business owners with liability protections without so many corporate formalities. An LLC is essentially a hybrid between a partnership and a corporation. LLCs were specifically authorized under Florid...

The best way to avoid legal problems that can plague a business and drain its resources is prior planning. Running a business of any size requires business acumen and planning. Savvy business owners regularly review marketing plans, inventory, and customers to adjust to market changes. Important business documents must be part of that review. Should I review my business legal documents with my lawyer Too often business owners convince themselves that their contracts, non-competes, and other legal documents are fine. The adage of "if it ain’t broke" . . . does not apply well to legal documents. Only the trained eye of an experienced business lawyer knows whether the documents are working as they were intended. So scheduling a review with your attorney of the legal documents you use in business is a smart way to reduce future problems. Another series of documents to review with your corporate attorney are those that your company might receive from other attorneys like demand le...

Even before the coronavirus pandemic occurred technology to allow businesses to operate remotely dramatically increased. The practice of law embraced those technologies making it easier for business lawyers to provide cost-effective and efficient services to their business clients. So the operative question is whether your business lawyer has embraced these technologies and is responsive to and keeping up with your business. Technology has changed business law When I was a very young attorney I had a case against an older and very experienced attorney. He claimed that his client did not have to pay my client back on a promissory note because of a certain case precedent. Unfortunately for him the case on which he built his entire defense had been overruled and was no longer good law. In just a few seconds using electronic research I was able to find that out. That attorney was still looking cases up the old way in books and was unfamiliar with and unaccustomed to electronic research. As...

Whether to have a noncompete comes up on both the employer and employee side. As a Board Certified expert in Florida business law I would say whether to offer or sign one depends on the unique circumstances because they are regulated and limited by law. Noncompetes are regulated by Statue In Florida, employment is at will. So, if there is no employment agreement, the the employee serves at the will of the employer. As a consequence, restricting that freedom of employment is regulated by a specific statute formally called Restraint of Trade, but commonly referred to as the non-compete statute. Noncompetes must be reasonable Because a noncompete restricts future employment, the Statute requires that it be reasonable in the time scope and geographic limits.  The time limits are in the statutes. Up to two years is ok and one year is deemed reasonable. That's not to say it is automatic, but most times those limits hold up.  How far the noncompete goes is a different story. The...