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Business Law Services We Offer in Florida
Business law covers several kinds of work. Each service below has its own page with more detail.
If you want a lawyer for your Florida LLC, the real question is usually which structure fits the business, not only how to file. A limited liability company, a corporation (taxed as a C corporation or, by election, an S corporation), a partnership, a sole proprietorship and a not-for-profit corporation each divide ownership, taxes and risk differently. We walk through those tradeoffs before anything is filed, then prepare the formation documents and the operating agreement, partnership agreement, or articles of incorporation and bylaws.
Forming an LLC matters because of what it can protect. Under Florida’s LLC statute, a member or manager is not personally liable for the company’s debts solely because of being a member or manager. Separately, a Florida LLC must deliver its annual report to the Florida Department of State between January 1 and May 1 each year. We help clients keep an entity in good standing after it is formed.
Contracts hold a business together: agreements with employees, contractors, suppliers, landlords, lenders and customers. Our business contract attorneys draft, review and negotiate agreements such as employment, independent contractor, consulting, confidentiality, license, supply, franchise and loan agreements, non-compete agreements and promissory notes. A contract drafted for your business, rather than copied from a template, is the strongest protection you can have before a dispute starts.
Buying a business is often the largest transaction you will ever make, and selling one is the payoff for years of work. Our business sale attorneys represent one side of the deal, whether it is a purchase of assets, stock or a membership interest, and whether the deal is a small sale or a larger merger or acquisition. We review the letter of intent, draft or mark up the purchase agreement, handle the legal side of due diligence, negotiate the terms and prepare the closing documents.
Business disputes tend to start with a contract. Our business litigation attorneys handle breach of contract claims, non-compete and non-disclosure violations, and partnership, member and shareholder disputes. Where it serves the client, we try demand letters, negotiation and mediation first, and we are prepared to litigate in state or federal court when a case cannot be resolved that way.
Non-competes deserve a particular note for employers and business buyers. Under Florida’s restrictive covenant statute, a court shall not enforce a restrictive covenant unless it is set forth in a writing signed by the person against whom enforcement is sought. A non-compete that was never signed is therefore a problem before any other argument begins.
A business name, logo or slogan is intellectual property, and it is easier to protect before a dispute than after one. Our trademark attorneys research a mark, help file Florida and federal applications, and handle trademark assignments when a mark is sold or transferred. Getting the application right the first time matters, because a denied application may not come with a refund of the filing cost.
People searching for the best business attorney in Florida are really asking how to tell one firm from another. A few questions help more than any ranking list does.
Michele Diglio-Benkiran founded Legal Counsel, P.A. and has practiced business and real estate law since 1999. Her business work includes litigation over non-compete violations, partnership breakups and contract disputes, as well as buying and selling businesses, contracts and corporate governance.
Richard Sierra is a commercial litigation and bankruptcy lawyer with more than three decades of experience handling civil litigation for individuals, businesses and government agencies. Results matter. We offer a free consultation, and pay later options are available for clients who qualify.
Legal Counsel, P.A. serves business owners throughout the State of Florida. Our main office is in Winter Garden, with additional offices in Orlando and in Seminole in Pinellas County. For Central Florida businesses, our Orlando practice pages go further into local courts and filings, and our Orlando business attorneys page is the place to start.
Starting, buying or growing a business? A short conversation with a Florida business attorney will tell you which documents and decisions matter most. The first consultation is free.
A business attorney advises owners on the legal side of running a company. That includes forming the entity, drafting and reviewing contracts, handling the purchase or sale of a business, protecting trademarks and representing the business in disputes. The work is split between preventing problems and resolving the ones that arise.
Many owners file the paperwork themselves, and the filing is only the first step. A lawyer helps with the questions the filing does not answer: whether an LLC is the right structure, how an operating agreement should divide control and profits, and how to keep the entity in good standing. If you have partners or investors, getting that agreement written well matters most.
An LLC lawyer helps choose the entity, prepares the articles of organization and the operating agreement, advises on how to keep the company’s liability protection intact, and assists with later changes such as adding or removing a member. The same attorney can often continue with contracts and other business needs.
Look for a firm that handles the kind of work you need, names the attorneys who will handle it, and explains its approach without promising an outcome. Reading the attorneys’ backgrounds and speaking with them first is a better test than any directory ranking.
Cost depends on the work. Forming an entity, drafting a contract and litigating a dispute are very different engagements. We discuss the scope and the fees with you during the free consultation, so you know what to expect before you decide.
A business attorney can help with forming a company, drafting or reviewing agreements, buying or selling a business, protecting a trademark, and resolving disputes with partners, customers, vendors or former employees. If you are not sure which of these you need, a short conversation usually makes it clear.
If you are starting, buying, selling or defending a business, call Legal Counsel, P.A. at 407-982-4321 for a free consultation, or use our contact form to tell us what you are dealing with.
The content on this website is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Reading this site or contacting us through it does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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