Business Legal Services 101: What You Need and What’s a Waste of Money
Are you overwhelmed by all the business legal services out there? I’ll break down what legal support you need and what’s a complete waste of money!
You know it’s important to protect your business legally, but you don’t want to overpay for legal services you don’t even need or skip any essentials that could have saved you thousands of $$$. As a practical lawyer myself with a successful online business, helping small business owners like you, I will show you what essential legal services you actually need and what are complete money-wasters.
In this blog post, I’m helping you choose the right business legal services for your business by sharing:
The must-haves that every business attorney should provide
The money-wasters to avoid in online legal services for small business owners
After learning all about what you need and what you must avoid in business legal services, you’ll have the right business legal services that provide legal support that helps your business and money grow while having all the protections you need without ending up in a money pit!
This post is all about the essentials every business owner needs in legal business services and what money-wasters you should avoid.
Best Business Legal Services
What Are Business Legal Services (and Why Do You Need Them)?
Business legal services are any legal services that keep your business running smoothly and protect it. This is a very broad term and could include anything, like:
Access to contract templates
Custom contracts and policies
Contract review, revision, and negotiation
Legal consultations
Business formation
Protection of intellectual property, like trademarking and copyright registrations
Litigation readiness services
Compliance support
Writing letters or phone calls on behalf of a business
Every business at every stage needs some form of legal support. Business legal services aren’t just for when things go wrong—they’re for protecting your business from the start.
When you’re just starting out an LLC formation, comprehensive contract templates (that are specifically created for your niche) for your clients and a privacy policy will suffice to ensure your business is protected and compliant.
As your business grows, your risks of liability grow. So, then you’ll need custom contracts that provide more comprehensive protections and contract reviews and revisions to ensure you don’t get screwed over.
If you don’t use legal services at all and do business without contracts, you’ll learn very quickly that you can lose not only your business but everything you own.
So, you need some form of business legal services. But here’s the thing: not all legal services are created equal, and most small businesses don’t need everything right away.
So let’s get into what you need and what are complete money-wasters.
What Online Legal Services for Small Business Owners You Definitely Need
So let’s start with what you definitely need, but also what to watch out for in these service offerings.
1. Custom Client Contracts & Terms and Conditions
Why you need it
Too many business owners start out without a contract and make these mistakes:
Have no contract or just an invoice with some disclaimers included, and think they’re fine because they get paid upfront (before they deliver a product or service)
Agree on a product or service with a client by email and think that because that constitutes a contract, they don’t need a formal contract
Use a random free contract template they found online or copy and paste someone else’s terms and conditions
A contract does not just ensure you get paid. A contract protects you against major claims and disputes. That is, only if you have a comprehensive contract that includes limitations of liabilities and indemnities and disclaimers that are tailored to your business niche and the specific services you offer.
You need an ironclad contract or T&Cs for your specific industry and (sub)niche.
So, from the very start, you need business legal services that offer contracts and terms and conditions specifically for your business. That does not have to cost thousands of $$$. You could either:
Purchase a lawyer-drafted comprehensive contract or T&C template designed for your specific niche that you can customize to include your specific processes, payment methods, and boundaries.
Or you could use affordable business legal services that provide custom contracts and T&Cs at fixed fees that are drafted by a lawyer.
2. Contract Review, Revision & Negotiation
In business, you’ll not just be dealing with client contracts that are based on your own templates; you’ll have to deal with many different contracts. For example:
Independent contractor agreements for people you hire for different jobs
Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) for different (potential) partners you’ll work with
Partnership or supplier agreements for partnerships, collaborations, suppliers
Photo and video release agreements for photos or videos that you use if others
Licensing agreements for using someone else’s intellectual property or licensing out your own
For these kinds of contracts, you need business legal services that offer the following support:
Drafting custom contracts for every type of business relationship for which you need these special types of contracts.
Reviewing and revising contracts that you have received from (potential) business partners, collaborators, suppliers, creators, or independent contractors.
Negotiation support and advice on what you should accept and what you should not accept to close a deal.
You need business legal services that:
Help you understand a contract before you sign it
Protect your interests so you get the best deal possible for your business
Flag anything that might harm your business, so you don’t agree to something that might hurt your business
3. Regular Legal Consultations for Advice, Compliance & Growth
The best business legal services that will actually help you grow are those that provide legal consultations (with the same lawyer) on a recurring basis.
Consultations with just 1 lawyer
First of all, ensure that you’ll always have the same person dedicated to your business. You don’t want to be talking to 5 different lawyers. You only want to deal with a different lawyer if you need a specialized service, like a tax lawyer for specific tax-related issues, a real estate lawyer for real estate transactions, or a litigation lawyer for court procedures.
You want to have one dedicated lawyer who understands your specific business, and that requires time to really get to know your business.
Why you need regular legal consultations
You want to have regular legal consultations for the following purposes:
Get legal advice on how to handle a business situation.
Ensuring your marketing practices comply with (influencer) marketing laws before you launch your new campaign.
Confirming your business complies with ever-changing privacy laws.
Get advice on how to improve your practices & processes to grow your business and earn more.
Your business legal services should not only provide you with basic legal help, but they should also help you take your business to the next level!
How often should you have legal consultations?
You probably don’t want to be talking to a lawyer every week. That’ll only make sense when negotiating a big deal or for certain legal processes that might be necessary for a period. But, in general, once a month would seem reasonable for most businesses.
Small Business Legal Services That Are Often a Waste (or Premature)
So, now you know the 3 things that your business legal services should include. Now, let’s get into what is a waste of your time and money!
1. Generalist Lawyers
Many business legal services, like the LegalZoom business legal plan, provide access to a lawyer. However, too often, these are generalist lawyers who do not understand your industry or niche.
You want a lawyer who understands your specific niche who understands the specific risks you face in your business.
Also, too many business legal services offer so-called custom contracts or DIY contracts, but they’re actually generic templates (where a lawyer just fills in the blanks) that aren’t tailored to your offers or niche.
They often miss important disclaimers or clauses specific to the product or service you offer.
2. Expensive Business Formation Services
I’ve seen too many business legal services that provide overly expensive business formation services.
When you’re at the beginning stages, you really don’t need to spend hundreds or even over $1,000 on business formation services.
You can just use a simple service, like ZenBusiness (not sponsored or affiliated), where you can simply set up an LLC in under 30 minutes. You’ll only need to pay the state fees. That’s it!
3. Trademark Packages at Launch
Many business legal services offer trademark packages over $1,000 for businesses that are starting out.
But here’s why it’s a bad idea:
No one knows who you are yet. You haven’t made a name for yourself yet. So, no one cares to copy you yet.
You probably will hate your logo or name or both a year from now and change it.
What you do want to do at the beginning of starting your business is this:
Start with a name clearance. Do a domain name check and have ZenBusiness do a name check when you set up your LLC. You don’t need a lawyer for simple name clearance.
Business legal services, like consultations and contracts, help ensure your business practices do not infringe on anyone else’s intellectual property rights.
Strong custom contracts that ensure your intellectual property rights remain protected.
The trademarking can wait until you’ve validated your brand and offer.
The right business legal services can give you peace of mind, protect your money, and help you make smarter decisions as you grow. The wrong ones? They just drain your wallet without giving you any real protection.
How to Find the Prepaid Legal Help for Small Business Owners
If you want to learn more about how to actually find prepaid business legal services, read this blog post on the 7 Non-Negotiables You Need in Prepaid Legal Services for Your Small Business (Before You Waste Money!).
Want Business Legal Services That Actually Make Sense for Your Business?
That’s exactly why I created Lawyered by Selene—a monthly fixed-fee legal membership made for online entrepreneurs and small business owners like you!
With my business legal services, you’ll get:
Unlimited email access for your legal questions
Free access to all my contract templates
Up to 2 contract revision rounds per month
A monthly 30-minute check-in call
Discounted flat fees for any extras
Click here to learn more and protect and grow your business the smart way.
This post was all about what you need in business legal services and what are complete money-wasters.
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