Business Planning and Consulting

Small business owners deserve to have a lawyer on their business team at a price that fits into – instead of bursting – any business’ operating budget. By utilizing a 90/10 flat-fee/hourly billing model along with custom-tailored service packages, Dom Law introduces an affordable, concierge-style approach to business law that is focused, purpose-driven, and cost-effective.

Dom Law works with small business owners and entrepreneurs through every stage of the business cycle. Whether you are looking to start, grow, or flourish, our business planning and consulting services can be designed to accommodate your business’s needs and budget. This includes business formation and development, contracts and employment related matters.

If you are an entrepreneur realizing the American Dream of starting your own business and being your own boss, a seasoned business professional ready to take the plunge by starting another entrepreneurial venture, or a working professional with their eyes set on generating a second income by joining the ranks of small business owners, it all begins with business formation and development.

The corporate shield or “corporate veil” is the fundamental benefit of forming a separate legal entity for any small business. Not only does forming a separate legal entity provide the opportunity for tax savings, it also gives almost instant credibility to any new venture, start-up, or small business. More importantly, forming a separate legal entity can provide the small business owner with much needed separation, a “veil,” between the small businesses owner’s personal and business assets and liability.

Common Business Entities Include:

• Limited Liability Companies (LLCs)
• Partnerships (General Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, and Limited Liability Partnerships)
• Corporations (C-Corps and S-Corps)
• Not-for-Profits 501(c)(3)
• Sole Proprietorships (doing business as, or “DBA”)
• Joint Ventures and Strategic Partnerships
• Delaware LLCs and Corporations
• Wyoming LLCs and Trusts (the “Wyoming Cowboy Cocktail”)
• Business Trusts

The Team at Dom Law has guided countless start-ups, entrepreneurs, small business owners, and investors through the seemingly daunting task of:

1. Conducting due diligence for the intended name of the business, trademarks and branding, and domain and social media handles.
2. Selecting the correct business entity (something that most non-lawyers cannot do by simply purchasing a “form” online).
3. Preparing and filing the necessary documents to give the business its legal existence, including filing articles with the state, designating a registered agent, and obtaining a certificate of status, and the business’s EIN number for business banking and loan purposes.
4. Electing S-Corp status.
5. Protecting the business, its members, and shareholders by preparing agreements that govern how the business will operate.
6. Securing financing through private placement offerings, SBA lending, and venture capital funding.
7. Establishing general corporate governance and regulatory compliance and oversight.

Things to consider when starting a business that the Team at Dom Law has experience handling include:

• Should I keep the members separate from the management by electing to form a manager-managed LLC?
• Am I seeking anonymity and additional protection for owners, shareholders, and investors?
• What is my exit strategy?
• Does franchising make sense?
• Should I seek pass-through taxation?
• How can I preserve founder interest through a properly drafted buy-sell-agreement that prevents dilution of interest?
• What is the preferred way to resolve disputes and determining alternate avenues of dispute resolution, before the dispute even occurs?
• How do we protect the business through the use of restrictive covenant agreements including confidentiality, non-disclosure, non-compete, and non-solicitation agreements, what is also known as a Trade Secret Protection Program?

These are just a few issues the small business owners will face early in the business cycle; issues that the Team at Dom Law navigate with you.

Contracts that are properly drafted, negotiated, and used are invaluable to every small business and small business owner. This is because a well drafted contract transfers risk away from the business, and away from the business owner. A properly negotiated contract, on the other hand, can not only mitigate and transfer risk, it can also ensure that money is put and kept where it belongs, thus maximizing profits for the small business and income for its owners. Using a contract requires discipline and effective legal counsel, something that is hard if not impossible to accomplish by simply purchasing a “FORM” online.

The Team at Dom Law has drafted, reviewed, negotiated, and implemented thousands of contracts and legal agreements on behalf of its small business clients. More importantly, the attorneys at Dom Law prescribe to plain-English drafting and revision, resulting in a contract that is as effective as it is easy to read and understand. As a business owner, you shouldn’t need to keep a legal dictionary on your desk to understand what you are signing. Dom Law takes the time to understand the deal parameters and contractual language involved with any contract or legal agreement, resulting in a contract that fits you and your business.

Thanks to our experience, most contract services can and will be offered on a flat-fee basis. This means that the client pays one set price which is quoted and agreed-upon at the beginning of the engagement, regardless of how many drafting and review hours it takes the attorneys at Dom Law to finish your contract or legal agreement. This practice makes contract services affordable, financially predictable, and effective for small business owners at all stages of the business cycle.

Common examples of contracts and legal agreements that Dom Law is experienced in drafting, reviewing, negotiating, and implementing include:

• Nondisclosure and Confidentiality Agreements (“NDAs”)
• Consulting or Independent Contractor Agreements with requisite Scope of Engagement or Scope of Work (“SOW”)
• Executive or Term Employment Agreements with Restrictive Covenants of Confidentiality, Non-Competition, and Non-Solicitation
• Intellectual Property Licensing Agreements
• Asset Acquisition Agreements
• Employee Offer Letters and Short Form Employment Agreements
• Release of Liability and Assumption of Risk Agreements
• Purchaser and Supplier Agreements
• Purchase Agreements
• Commercial Lease Agreements
• Private Placement Memorandum and Subscription Agreements
• Equity Incentive Plan Documents and Award Agreements, including Stock Options and Restricted Unit Awards
• Joint Venture (“JV”) and Strategic Partnership Agreements
• Website Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
• Franchise Agreements
• Guarantees
• Promissory Notes and Loan Agreements
• UCC Financing Forms and Bills of Sale

Employees can be a source of great joy and limitless pain to every small business owner. The Team at Dom Law works with small business owners to bring order and solidarity to small business owners employing W-2 employees and retaining 1099 contractors. This starts with ensuring the small business owner has the proper tools at their disposal, including the proper employment offer letters, short-form employment agreements, and confidentiality agreements and restrictive covenants in place from the very beginning of that relationship.

The Team at Dom Law bring can bring consistency to the employer-employee relationship by working with small business owners to prepare a concise and effective employee handbook that includes the company’s mission statement, goals and objectives, and code of ethics. This expands to the development of proper policies and procedures for training, disciplining, and terminating employees in a way that protects the small business and saves the small business owner’s sanity in the process.

Dom Law also has experience handling more complicated employment issues, including ERISA matters, structuring benefits, and tax planning and legal and regulatory compliance for larger workforces bound by Title VII, the ADA, IRCA, and FMLA. This has recently included structuring reductions in force (RIFs), voluntary layoffs, and furloughs.