Bernadette Starzee, BridgeTower Media Newswires
There’s a good law firm behind many successful businesses. As your company looks to the future, it’s important to align yourself with a talented, dedicated attorney or attorneys who will take the time to learn about your business and provide sound legal and business advice at every juncture of your company’s lifecycle.
For many, choosing the right attorney can be an intimidating process. But fortunately, conducting some preliminary research can give you a level of comfort, as it will help you narrow down your search for an attorney that will be a good fit for your business.
First, think about which legal services you anticipate needing an attorney for. Many businesses will look to a corporate law firm to guide them through a host of matters, which may include setting up legally correct employment practices, protecting intellectual property, handling commercial real estate transactions, conducting due diligence for mergers and acquisitions and drafting contracts and agreements for various other business dealings.
Which services you anticipate needing should guide you in your search for a lawyer/law firm. Most companies need guidance through the complex web of laws that govern the employer-employee relationship. These laws are constantly changing, and many well-meaning employers run afoul of some of them simply because they are unaware of their obligations. Failure to set up legally correct employment practices can leave an employer vulnerable to a lawsuit from a disgruntled employee or a group of disgruntled employees.
An attorney with a focus on employment law can advise you in setting up sound policies in addition to guiding you through handling specific issues as they arise. For instance, one of the most important services an employment lawyer can provide is advising you on employee dismissals, whether for an individual employee or a group layoff.
Employment lawyers can also help you create employee handbooks and provide training to educate your managers and supervisors on avoiding situations that could lead to charges of sexual harassment, discrimination and/or retaliation from employees. They can help you draft non-compete agreements, offer letters, performance reviews and other documents. They can assure that your practices are in compliance with the Affordable Care Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, among other regulations. As technology continues to transform the workplace, a good employment lawyer can advise you on setting up bring-your-own-device policies that govern the use of employees’ mobile devices for company work as well as the lawful use of social media. They can also perform audits or assist you with self-audits to make sure you are in compliance with wage-and-hour laws. Employment lawyers may also be able to represent you in court should your matter lead to litigation.
For some companies, intellectual property, such as patents, copyrights material and trade secrets, are major assets. If this applies to your business, look for a law firm with a specialty in this area.
Similarly, if you expect to be involved in commercial real estate transactions or mergers and acquisitions, look for lawyers who handle these matters routinely.
Beyond the type of matter for which you expect to need guidance, look for a lawyer or law firm with experience dealing with companies in your industry.
Knowing which types of attorney you’re in the market for will help you focus your search. It always helps if you can get a personal recommendation from someone you trust. Ask friends and colleagues at other companies for the names of attorneys that have helped their business.
Armed with names of attorneys, visit their websites, which should provide information about their areas of concentration, experience, credentials and philosophy. Search the internet and local newspaper archives to see what, if anything, has been written about the attorneys, and to see if the attorneys have authored any articles on the legal topics of interest to you. Find out if the attorney gives educational seminars at a local bar association or to other groups on the topic, which indicates that it is truly an area of concentration for the attorney.
Call the firms and request a representative list of the attorneys’ clients. Are these companies similar in size to yours? If your business is much larger or smaller than most companies on the list, the attorney might not be the best fit.
However, be sure to think about where your company is heading; for instance, if you are rapidly growing, will the attorney be able to handle your needs a few years down the road?
Attorney’s fees can vary widely, so it’s a good idea to do some comparison shopping. Find out what the fees are, and how they are structured.
Find out if the attorney you are meeting would handle your matter personally, or whether it would be assigned to an associate or other staff member. If the latter, ask to meet the other professionals who will be working on your business, to make sure you find them professional and competent.
