Why you need to make a legal plan in 350 words or less…

A few quick horror stories to get your attention. I know, I hate fear tactics too, but it’s really the only way to show you that mega mistakes can happen early. …it’s pretty easy to avoid (and, no, I’m not going to send you to a lawyer who will charge you 5k).   

No Agreements. No Facebook

Winklevoss’ still made millions but this is a good example of not using the tools at hand to protect your business and clarify your agreements.

Privacy Policy Costs $700,000

Imagine if you built up your online business for a proposed sale of $700,000 only to find out that your website privacy policy effectively blocks the sale (yes, that happened).

Name Change

Imagine if you spent three years developing your online audience, gathering emails, writing killer content, webinars, the whole bit. And, just when you start to get traction and start monetizing your site, you get a cease and desist letter explaining that you are infringing on an existing trademark. Trust me, this happens all the time even to one-person shops (I’ve suffered through it with several clients). 

Partnership Dispute Ends Business and Costs Money

Imagine you and your friend started this business. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before (see Winklevoss experiment above but take out the money of Facebook and you end up with a lot of money and time down the drain). We all know how this one can end…ugly. That’s how.  But, it doesn’t have to be this way. Use our multi-owner workbook and education resources to make sure you address everything you need to in order to avoid becoming a business statistic.

Handshake Deal Costs McDonald’s

Allegedly, Ray Kroc agreed to pay .5% royalties in a handshake deal at the time of buying McDonald’s from Dick and Mac McDonald. Either way, it’s not clear what the deal was or if there was one, which is the point. Get deals documented (even if via email). 

For more information on early legal mistakes, read our 10 Legal Mistakes.

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