Business Structures And Business Relationships

Our Commercial team of Solicitors can provide a readymade shelf company or a bespoke company which is tailored to your every need.

Deciding on the structure of your business requires careful consideration. It’s important to get things right, straight from the off as this will ensure your business is working as effectively and efficiently as possible.

There are several business structures:

• Sole Trader – you set up the business and you own the business. You can employ other people but you are the only owner.
• Partnership – a relationship of two or more ‘partners’ with a view to making a profit. You are all jointly responsible.
• Limited Liability Partnerships (LLP) – similar to a partnership but where some or all partnerships have limited liabilities and each partner is not responsible or liable for another partner’s negligence
• Limited Company – a company set up and is limited by what has been invested or guaranteed to the company
• Public Limited Company (PLC) – a company that can be publicly traded on the stock exchange and where shares are openly available for purchase

If you are unsure of which business structure is suitable for your business then we can help. Working with your accountants and tax advisers we will ensure that the business structure you chose will future proof your business for decisions you may make later on in life, including selling your business, passing it down to your children and the need to raise finance.

We can also advise on documents to structure your relationship with your other stakeholders, including employee engagement schemes, including EMI and EIS scheme, shareholder and cross option agreements and business LPAs.