What Services Do Corporate Solicitors Provide?
02 December 2019
As a business owner, you will find that you require the services of a corporate solicitor at some point during your career – but you can be forgiven for not knowing the intricacies of what services solicitors actually provide.
You may find yourself considering exactly what services corporate solicitors provide, and if you have ever posed this question to yourself, then you have found the right article! Read on to find out more about the typical services provided by corporate solicitors, and some basic definitions of each service.
Corporate Solicitor Services
Business Sales and Purchases – Business sales and purchases occur on a regular basis and can come about for a whole host of reasons. In some cases, businesses are looking to merge with others to unite two companies who offer similar products; whilst in other cases, investors can be on the lookout for businesses with potential that they can purchase and take ownership of.
No matter which type of takeover you may be considering, a corporate solicitor can help guide you through the lengthy process to ensure your business sale or purchase goes off without any problems.
Management Buyouts/Buy ins – In short, a management buy in occurs when an external management team purchases a company and completely replaces the existing management team. On the other hand, a management buyout is actually quite similar to a normal business acquisition – with the major difference being that the purchasers of the business are actually the existing managers.
Corporate solicitors will deal with a whole host of issues throughout the legal process, from drafting the initial Heads of Agreement right through to dealing with the management team’s funders.
Corporate Finance – In most cases businesses will look to secure corporate finance when they are refinancing or buying a company and require additional funding. During this process, the lender will obviously require some form of security against the loan – this can be anything from secured chargers over property or personal guarantees from directors.
Corporate solicitors have extensive experience dealing with corporate finance, so it can be extremely useful for any business to consult a solicitor during the process of securing finance.
Shareholder Agreements – When there are several shareholders within a business, it can be difficult to know exactly who has what rights. That’s where shareholder agreements come in to play, as this agreement is a contract between each of the shareholders within a business, which outlines the rights and obligations of each individuals.
When all parties have a solid foundation of the points, they want to include in the shareholder agreement, it only takes a matter of days to complete the process. In most cases, a corporate solicitor will be on hand to help shareholders draft up a provisional agreement.
Purchase or Lease of Business Premises – A solicitor will inevitably be required during the process of buying, selling or leasing a commercial property to ensure that the property exchanges hands in the correct way. Conducting relevant searches on the property in question is an essential part of the process to guarantee that the purchasing side are buying into exactly the type of property they expect.
There are actually a whole host of issues that solicitors must deal with throughout the commercial property sales process, such as navigating options and guarantees and sourcing property finance among other activities.
Confidentiality Agreements – If your business is entering into talks with a third party, in some cases it can be of paramount importance to draft a confidentiality agreement. Also known as a ‘non-disclosure agreement’, a confidentiality agreement is a legally binding agreement between two parties which states that neither company will disclose the information shared to anyone else.
Whilst confidentiality agreements can be written by a business owner, we would strongly suggest getting legal assistance when drafting the letter as this will avoid complications down the line.
Exclusivity Agreements – Exclusivity agreements are extremely important when dealing with commercial property sales and purchases, as the agreement outlines that both parties agree to negotiate on a prospective deal with each other for a set period of time. The main purpose of this type of agreement is to ensure that the selling party does not play two potential buyers off against each other.
Corporate solicitors have extensive experience dealing with exclusivity agreements, which means they are adept at drafting watertight agreements for both the purchasing and selling party.
Legal Due Diligence – When you are considering investing in or buying a company, it’s of paramount importance that you undertake a lengthy period of due diligence. The process of due diligence is exhaustive and goes into the finer details of any business you are looking at acquiring, helping to ensure that you make a fully informed decision.
By hiring an experienced corporate solicitor, you can avoid potential legal pitfalls that can come about during negotiations. Your solicitor will draft a transaction contract and other related documents as part of the process, to ensure your business is as prepared as possible.
If you require any further information about any of the services mentioned in this article that you feel you may need help with in the near future, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the team here at Curtis Law. Our commercial solicitors have years of combined experience and take great pride in providing each of our clients with the very best services throughout their case with us.
You can get in touch with us directly by calling 01254 297130 and discuss your requirements with one of our solicitors. If you are pressed for time, then you can fill in our simple online enquiry form and a member of our team will be in touch with you at a time of your liking.