Dealing with the law is a subject that no-one is entirely comfortable with. Whether it’s organizing your tax returns or establishing a new business, simply trying to make sense of all the different terminology can be a minefield.
Like it or not, though, this is something every startup needs to face if they are to become a legitimate and successful business. To help you get through the murky road of business legal issues, here are three legal considerations that you should face as a business owner/startup founder.
Protecting Intellectual Property
The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) defines intellectual property (IP) as any creation of the mind. This includes everything from artistic works and inventions to brandings used in commerce. With such a broad-ranging subject, you won’t be surprised that there are multiple types of IP protection.
The three that you should be familiar with are copyrights, patents, and trademarks:
- Copyright provide the holder with “original works of authorship” and several other intellectual works. It protects the form of expression (e.g. car engine description), not the subject (e.g. car engine itself.)
- Trademark heavily relates to brand image, including but not limited to word, name, symbol or a particular edvice. The idea is to distinguish your unique identity from the rest. That said, trademark can be used to prevent others from using a similar image or mark as yours, but not to prevent others to create the same products/services as yours.
- Patent gives you the full rights for your invention or creation. Others can’t reproduce, using, or even selling your creation.
Copyrights are the simplest of the bunch, and are often automatically applied to original works, but when dealing with trademarks and patents things can start to become more complex. Seeking out advice from specialists, like Withers Worldwide, is highly recommended.
Employing Members of Staff
As your company grows, you’ll no doubt be looking to employ extra members of staff. Much of what you can offer them is dependent on the current law, including the number of hours they can work, the number of days off they’re entitled to, and the minimum amount of money you can pay them by the hour.
If you have people working on or even visiting your premises, you’ll also want to take out employee and public liability insurance. This will help cover any legal fees should someone be in an accident in the workplace and the case ends up going to court.
Dealing with Additional Costs
Finally, many small business owners will want to know how they can reduce, or even eliminate, some of the additional legal costs that go along with setting up a new business. After all, most startups are run on a shoestring budget so any savings can go a long way.
Setting up a limited company can cost as little as £75 plus VAT and domain registrations are available for as little as £3 a month. If you’re dealing with a solicitor, try to find someone who will work for a fixed fees on an agreed upon amount of work, rather than on an hourly rate.
Takeaway
Most certainly, there are other legal considerations that you should consider. Depending on your level of legal knowledge, you might need the help of your trusted lawyers and/or specialists to aid you with any legal compliance issues that may arise.
Good luck with your endeavour!
