Setting up a company in Australia
After deciding that a company suits your requirements as the entity through which to operate your business, follow these steps to get your company up and running.
Company Constitutions v Shareholders’ Agreements
When people go into business together it’s common for them to enter into a Shareholders’ Agreements to govern how they will own and administer their company. Our preference is to use a tailored version of the company’s ‘Constitution’ as the primary instrument to regulate the affairs of a company. Our reasons are:
Are you breaching the Privacy Act?
Are you protecting your employee’s personal information? If not, you may be breaching your obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.
Beware: You could be personally liable for underpaying staff
Given the increasing heat being placed on directors and business owners, it’s important for you to understand the legal requirements and put in place compliance systems so that employees are being paid their legal wages and entitlements.
Modern employment awards – are you a risky business?
Picture this:
You are a small business owner.
After getting through the first five years of trade, you are starting to see returns on the time, emotion and finances that you have invested into the business.
Then a document comes in the mail and your fortune turns on its head. You are faced with a claim by a former employee and you realise your business is faced with an unexpected liability worth thousands of dollars. All due to a clause nested in a Modern Award that you had simply overlooked or misunderstood.
Here’s how to avoid becoming that business.
Does your company need a Constitution?
Here are some reasons why you should think about a Constitution for your company, rather than simply adopting the ‘replaceable rules’ in the Corporations Act.
Crime never pays, but you might have to.
As a business owner, you trust your employees to be honest. It’s therefore every employer’s worst fear to find out that an employee has been stealing from you. But what if then, that employee sues you, and your lawyer tells you that employee has a case?
How to effectively limit your liability
Limitation of liability clauses are a great way for parties to a contract to limit, manage or allocate risk between them.
If you see the word ‘indemnity’ in a contract – SEEK LEGAL ADVICE IMMEDIATELY
Indemnities are often treated like a ‘standard’ or ‘boilerplate’ contract clause, when they are anything but. If they are ignored or overlooked, you could be in trouble when something goes wrong. However, when used properly, indemnity clauses can help you to manage your risk when entering into an agreement.
A life-changing ‘chocolate coated’ deal
As a lawyer, you really savour the great deals you get to assist great clients with. Find out about just such a deal we recently had the fortune of being entrusted with.