Whether you are starting a business from scratch or buying an existing business you should consider setting up a corporation or limited liability company (LLC) before you actually sign any agreements or documents relating to your new venture. To the extent possible, avoid signing any contracts, loan agreements or leases in your personal name. In

From time to time I enjoy featuring a business law blog worth reading. The San Diego Small Business Law Blog from Joseph Dang is definitely one to check out. Although the blog is centered on California law, Joseph has a number of general posts that are helpful to any small business owner.

In particular, I encourage

One of the best things about blogging is the great people I have had the opportunity to "meet". One of my favorites is a franchise consultant and blogger from Cleveland, Ohio named Joel Libava.  The Franchise King and I share a passion for helping prospective franchisees obtain information to properly research franchise opportunities. I have read

I’ll be speaking about the dangers and pitfalls of the electronic workplace this afternoon at the Iowa Employment, Training and Benefits Conference sponsored by HR-One Source. 

Matt Brick and Doug Fulton of Brick Gentry are also presenting at the conference.  Matt is providing the employment law update and Doug will present on FMLA basics. 

A few weeks ago I attended a conference relating to venture capital in Iowa. During the talk several of the panelists commented that they would not sign a non-disclosure agreement prohibiting them from discussing a potential business idea they learned about from someone seeking capital. The venture capitalists did not want potential liability for ideas that

A terrific post from employment attorney Ellen Simon discusses the potential liability and hazards when an employer accesses the personal emails of an employee. The actions of the employer described in the post were extreme but every employer should think twice before accessing an employee’s personal email.

I have discussed the dangers of the electronic