Gayton Law

Greetings!

It may seem to be a little early to think about 2013, but thinking about 2013 now will put you ahead of the curve so you can enjoy yourself. Here are five things to consider before you become overwhelmed with the holiday season.

1. Get your paperwork and documents in order early for taxes

At least twice a year, I conduct a seminar for creatives and small businesses on taxes. While I do not hold myself out as a tax expert, I can identify several tax issues that daunt creatives and other entrepreneurs. Paperwork is unavoidable, even in this digital age. Even more so as many, if not most, transactions are conducted online and physical receipts are becoming rare. But an organized approach to your documents can save you money and time. Many creatives and other small businesses ask me about the likelihood of an audit. In my experience, it is hard to make an accurate prediction, but I can say with certainty that having the right documents to support your tax filing can save you a lot of grief even if you are audited. Gayton law can help you decide which business entity is right for you. Please ask about our Business Entity Selection table.

2. Look for money on the table

You are busy. You have ordered supplies, hired contractors, made sales, etc., but have you gone back to check whether you have received all the services for which you paid? How about royalties? If you were offered a discount on a purchase, did you receive that discount? On the flip side, have you fulfilled all your obligations to a customer? In either circumstance, money may be left on the table waiting for you to pick up. If you were promised a discount or service, go back and review your agreements to see if you received these things. If you provide services or offer discounts, this is an opportunity to build better customer relationships by contacting them to see if your service met expectations and perhaps get more business.

If you are concerned about whether you have received the services requested at the price you paid, contact Gayton Law to conduct a contract audit for your business. If you have contracts that need to be revised to better reflect your business services, Gayton Law can help you update your contracts and make suggestions to improve your contractual relationships.

3. Update your media policies

Even a one person operation should have in place an information and document retention plan, especially when so much of this information is in virtual as well as physical form. Maintaining and keeping old and outdated documents not only clutters your hard drives, cloud drives and desk drawers, but unmanaged documentation may create legal vulnerabilities for your business. Creating policies about document retention which apply to both physical and virtual documentation, as well as email and social media communication is a crucial business practice.

Gayton Law can prepare document retention policies for your business.

4. Employees and Independent Contractor Agreements

Now may be the time to review your employee and independent contractor agreements, especially if existing contracts (even oral ones!) are several years old. Good agreements protect the business as well as your employees and independent contractors.

Gayton Law can review your current agreements and provide advice about whether an update will be advantageous to you and better protect your interests.

5. Annual Business Meetings and Corporate Governance

Even small businesses should take a moment to assess the previous year. Whether you are an LLC, corporation, partnership or a sole proprietor, there is value in setting aside a day or even a few days to look over your accomplishments and start outlining future goals. For those of you with LLCs, corporations and partnerships, your business documents typically require annual meetings. Although everything may be well, getting into the habit of holding annual meetings is a useful way to maintain good businessrecords, which will assist you in the future.

Gayton Law can prepare the documents you need for a small business enterprise, including bylaws and operating agreements as well as assist with corporate governance processes.

Knowledge Asset and Governance Management

For those of you investigating whether knowledge asset and governance management practices are in your future, any knowledge management (KM) plan should incorporate all of the above considerations. Please contact Gayton Law for information about how to include these practices into your KM plan.

Recent Publications

In March 2012, Kendall-Hunt publishers released the 9th edition of Legal Aspects of Engineering by Cynthia Gayton. This book is used in several engineering courses and is a useful reference for anyone interested in contracting, intellectual property, engineering practice, and other general legal issues.

Thank you for reading. Have a great holiday season!

The information contained in this website is for general guidance on matters of interest only. The application and impact of laws can vary widely based on specific facts. The information contained in this newsletter should not be construed as a substitute for consultation with professional advisors. Certain links in this newsletter connect to other websites maintained by third parties over whom Gayton Law has no control. Gayton Law makes no representations as to the accuracy or any other aspect of information contained in other websites.

Filed under: Business Entities, Contract Administration, Creation, Document Retention, Employee Agreements, Independent Contractors, Knowledge Asset Management, Knowledge Management, Royalties, Selection, Social Media