Why Even A Simple Contract Can Save Your Bacon
Every business owner says it; "Do I really need a written contract?" The answer is "YES, YES and YES!" Using a written contract is like buying insurance for your business deals, but much better. What Is A Contract?
Simply put, a contract is an enforceable agreement between two or more parties. The contract contains the promises made by the parties to one another, which is legally known as "consideration." These promises define the relationship being undertaken as well as what happens if th ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
The Secret To Protecting Your Business Assets
Regardless of the type of business you conduct, there is a significant risk of being sued in our litigious society. Lawsuits can range from claims of negligence to defective products to disputes with employees. Incorporating is a means of guarding against these potential threats. Single Incorporation - Protecting Your Personal Assets
Incorporating your business is a method for creating a legal wall between your personal assets and business. Any judgment against your business will not impac ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Tax Benefits of A “C” Corporation - Funding
If you are going to form a corporation, you might be surprised to learn a “C” corporation comes with a lot of tax benefits. While this article isn’t intended to replace the advice of a good tax professional, it may serve to open your eyes to the value of a “C” corporation. “C” Corporation
The “C” in C corporation has a few legal ramifications, but it is primary a designation for tax purposes. Put in layman’s terms, the designation simply means the corporation will act as its own tax entity ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Tax Benefits of "C" Corporations – Business Failure
Statistics show that many businesses will fail. If you can survive the first two years, chances of your business succeeding go up dramatically. But what if you don’t make it? If you have a “C” corporation, you may get a tax break. “C” Corporation
The “C” in C corporation has a few legal ramifications, but it is primary a designation for tax purposes. Put in layman’s terms, the designation simply means the corporation will act as its own tax entity. To become a shareholder in the corporatio ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Supreme Court Decides Against Grokster In File Sharing Decision
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled peer-to-peer sites such as Grokster, Kazaa and Morpheus can be held responsible for copyright infringement by their users. In a rare 9-0 decision in favor of Plaintiff MGM, the Justices held that a business distributing technology with the active intent of promoting copyright violations could not escape liability for subsequent copyright infringements. Although unanimous, the ruling is a strained effort to isolate file sharing from other industries. In arguing ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Stop Collection Agency Harassment
Owing a debt does not automatically subject you to harrassing, threatening and other inappropriate collection agency behavior. Some collection agencies go too far with what I call "renegade collectors" they will repeatedly call you at your home and/or business, threaten to send a marshall over to serve you with lawsuit papers or send intimidating letters, appearing to come from an attorney or law firm, stating that you will lose your car, wages and other property if you do not pay your debt! It ...
Author: Susan Chana Lask, Esq.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
S Corporations – Filing The Election
Getting a corporation designated as an “S” can be a bit confusing. If you are committed to getting an “S” corporation, here is how you do it. “S” Corporation
The “S” in S corporation refers primarily to a tax designation. While electing to be an S corporation does have legal implications, such as no more than 75 shareholders, the designation really concerns pass through tax issues. Put in layman’s terms, the designation simply means the corporation will “pass through” its taxes to sharehol ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
S Corporation - What Is It?
For many small businesses, the “S” corporation is the business entity of choice. The “S” in S corporation refers to a tax designation. All corporations are created the same way under state law. A small business must then chose a tax status, to wit, “C”, “S” or non-profit. Important issues concerning S corporations are covered in this article. C Corporation v. S Corporation
Federal tax laws automatically consider every corporation to be a “C” designation. A small business, however, may elec ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Protect Your Business With Non-Disclosure Agreements
Every business should protect proprietary information when dealing with independent contractors, vendors and other businesses. The best way to do this is to use a non-disclosure agreement, often referred to as an “NDA.” What is an NDA?
An NDA is an agreement between two parties to protect confidential information disclosed in a business transaction. The proprietary information can include business methods, finances, client lists, and anything that isn’t already readily available in the pub ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Prompt Delivery Rules – Internet Product Sales
The Internet is the fastest growing source of mail order sales. The explosive growth in the goods and services sold online has in the past taken many online sellers by surprise: demand has outpaced supply, depleting inventories and disappointing customers. This can lead to serious problems with the FTC. The FTC has issues directives spelling out the ground rules for making promises about shipments, notifying consumers about unexpected delays, and refunding consumers' money. Enforced by the FT ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Privacy Rights – Big Brother’s Bumbling
The General Accounting Office has reported the federal government is ignoring individual privacy rights of citizens. Not only is it ignoring guidelines, the actions being taken may server to put your privacy at more risk of being violated. Government Run Amuck
Five federal agencies are charged with using electronic data mining tools to track terrorist, catch criminals and prevent general fraudulent behavior. In using these tools, the agencies are supposed to fall a set of guidelines design ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Online Consumers – What Are They Complaining About?
For many businesses, e-commerce represents a tremendous method for generating revenues. To maximize the profit potential, you need to keep an eye on issues that drive your prospects nuts. The FTC maintain a list of the top 10 “dot.cons” complained about by consumers. If your site falls within one of these industries, you must make sure you address these concerns. Consumer Complaints
According to the FTC, here's what online consumers are complaining about most:
Internet Auctions
The B ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Non-Compete Agreements In Action - Microsoft v. Google
Non-Compete Agreements are controversial documents that restrict a person’s right to work with competitors of a former employer. The effectiveness of one such non-compete agreement is on display in a recent lawsuit filed by Microsoft against Google. Dr. Kai-Fu Lee
Dr. Kai-Fu Lee joined Microsoft in 1998 and was in charge of creating and running company operations in China. Over the last few years, Lee has been working on Microsoft’s speech recognition system. The system is rumored to be th ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Minority Shareholders – Fighting The Man
Investing in a corporate entity is fairly standard practice in our society. Problems arise when you own a small percentage of shares, but disagree with the direction the majority shareholders are taking the entity. As a minority shareholder, do you have any way to fight “the man”, to wit, the majority shareholders? Minority Shareholders
A couple of your friends come up with a great business idea, but need start-up capital. You agree to provide $10,000 for 30 percent of the shares. A corpor ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Microsoft v. Google – Kai-Fu Lee’s Non-Compete Agreement
Unless you’ve been on vacation all summer, the brawl between Google and Microsoft should be old news. New developments, however, have occurred with publication of the non-compete agreement signed by Kai-Fu Lee. Google v. Microsoft
Earlier this year, Kai-Fu Lee quit Microsoft to go work for Google. In doing so, Lee allegedly violated a non-compete agreement he had signed with Microsoft. Predictably, Microsoft sued Lee to prevent the move and the brawl began. Microsoft landed the first punch ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Merger and Acquisition Valuation Practice Outline
Outline for a New M&A Valuation
Practice Area for a Law Firm
Michael A. S. Guth, Ph.D., J.D., Practice Leader
This outline describes the M&A package that our law firm would normally prepare when retained to find targeted acquisitions for a client. If we are retained by a seller, then this outline describes the information on our client that we would present to potential buyers. Any potential buyer will have the standard set of key questions that must be satisfactorily answer ...
Author: Dr. Michael A. S. Guth
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Marketing on the Internet: Legal Rules of the Road
The Internet is connecting advertisers and marketers to customers from Boston to Bali. If you're thinking about advertising on the Internet, remember that many of the same rules that apply to other forms of advertising apply to electronic marketing. The Federal Trade Commission Act allows the FTC to act in the interest of all consumers to prevent deceptive and unfair acts or practices. The FTC has determined that a representation, omission or practice is deceptive if it is likely to:
1. Mi ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Managing Your Home Based Online Business – 2
In the first part of this series of articles, on managing your online business at home, I wrote about the many management responsibilities and functions you have rolled into one if you have your own sole proprietor business, with no staff. Your management task is perhaps the most difficult of all. You have to manage yourself, in all those different areas of your business such as finance, marketing, purchasing and computing.
I believe that if you think of your new home business as having ...
Author: Roy Thomsitt
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Licensing Your Copyrighted Materia
If you’ve taken the necessary steps to register your copyrighted works, you inevitably will have an opportunity to royalties off of them. To take advantage of the opportunity, you will need to be familiar with copyright license agreements. Copyright License Agreement
A copyright license agreement sets for the terms under which a third party can use your content. In legal language, you will the “licensor” with the other party being the “licensee.” The purpose of the agreement is to set fort ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Incorporating - Capitalization Tips
Capitalizing a new business entity is a critical step of the formation process. Failing to take the step can lead to serious legal problems if the entity is ever sued. So, what is capitalization and what steps must be taken? Capitalizing Your Corporation
“Capitalization” essentially refers to funding your corporation. In essence, you are providing substance to the entity in the form of money or property. Typically, the funding process works in two ways.
Corporate Stock
You must own s ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Home Business Software To Get Your Business Started
My Software - Checkwriter Home & Business available at Rothline Entertainment for only $13.79 with Free Shipping Included!
Save Time & Money with Bank-Approved Checks.…
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Google’s Book Scanning and Copyright Laws
As you may know, Google is making an effort to scan every book in the world. The goal is to create a giant online database of every book that can be searched. One small problem is the fact that Google is violating copyright laws. Copyright
Google argues its book database doesn’t violate copyright laws. The company suggests it only shows short passages and accompanies the text with ads showcasing where the full books can be purchased. Of course, the ads are Google Adwords from which the com ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
FTC Names Dirty Dozen Email Scams
The FTC has published 12 scams you are most likely to receive as email. They are: 1. Business opportunities
These business opportunities make it sound easy to start a business that will bring lots of income without much work or cash outlay. The solicitations trumpet unbelievable earnings claims $1,000 a day or more without doing any work. Many business opportunity solicitations claim to offer a way to make money in an Internet-related business. Short on details but long on promises, these ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
'Free' and 'Low Cost' PC Offers – The Catch
You've probably seen the ads for "low cost" PC's - "PC's for $199" - or even "free" computers. If you're in the market for a personal computer, you should know "free" doesn't always mean free. Very often, certain conditions and restrictions found in the fine print of advertisements for "free" or "low cost" PC's can turn a so-called deal into an expensive purchase. Bundled Services
"Free" or "low-cost" PC offers often require "bundled" Internet service contracts, which may last up to three ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Four Principles of Emerging Market Success
Emerging markets are high risk and high reward. In my work as an attorney representing Western companies in emerging markets, I have concluded there are four essential elements to emerging market success: a good partner, an open mind, active participation, and extreme patience. I have seen enough essential similarities between such diverse countries as Russia, Korea (ten years ago when it was still an emerging market country), Vietnam, and even the Gambia and Papua New Guinea, to believe cert ...
Author: Dan Harris
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Four Essential Principles of Emerging Market Success
Emerging markets are high risk and high reward. In my work as an attorney representing Western companies in emerging markets, I have concluded there are four essential elements to emerging market success: a good partner, an open mind, active participation, and extreme patience.
I have seen enough essential similarities between such diverse countries as Russia, Korea (ten years ago when it was still an emerging market country), Vietnam, and even the Gambia and Papua New Guinea, ...
Author: Dan Harris
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Forming a Corporation – Investors
You’ve come up with the best idea since sliced bread, figured out a business name and formed a corporation. There is, however, one small problem. You need money. Welcome to the world of investing. Business Funds
Unless Bill Gates is your friend, money is going to be a problem for every new business. Even the might Google had to hunt for cash with one of the founders of Sun Microsystems finally kicking down a much needed $100,000. Whether you decide to pimp your business plan to anyone brea ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Domain Name Trademarks
As your Internet business grows, the value of your domain name increases. The issue of a domain name trademark should move to the top of your list. You need to guard against unscrupulous competitors that may try to incorporate your domain name in their meta tags to obtain search engine rankings under your name. If you have a domain name trademark, you can go after these individuals and compel the search engines to remove their listings.
What Is A Trademark?
A trademark is a distin ...
Author: Richard Chapo
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Do You Own Your Web Site Design?
Your web site has been up for a few months and you are making money hand over foot. While surfing sites one evening, you are shocked to find a competitor using your design. You find out your designer sold them the same design. They must be breaking the law, right? It all depends on whether you own the copyright to your web site design. Many site owners are shocked to find out they do not.
What is Copyright?
Copyright is a method of protection for authors of original works such as ...
Author: Richard Chapo
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Corporation – What Is It?
Simply put, a corporation is a form of business entity. You probably already know this, so this article delves into a few of the particulars. Separate Entity
For legal purposes, a corporation is considered a separate legal entity from those forming it. Although it is not a living person, a corporation generally has the same rights. It can own property, enter contracts and claim constitutional rights. Unluckily, a corporation also must pay taxes like you and me.
Unlike each of us, a corp ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Congress Considers National Data Privacy Law
Legislation was introduced into Congress this week that would establish a national data privacy law. The bill would require businesses to disclose to consumers any breaches that result in the exposure of personal information. The legislation is a reaction to the massive security breaches that have occurred over the last year. In the most notable breach, over 40 million credit card numbers were exposed in a security breach involving CardSystems, an online processor. LexisNexis, Bank of America ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
California Limited Liability Company – An Overview
Many people are surprised to learn that the LLC business entity is a fairly recent phenomenon. Wyoming was the first state to legislate the creation of LLCs in 1977. Most states didn’t jump on the LLC bandwagon until 1988 when the IRS classified the LLC as a pass through entity for tax purposes. This ruling turned LLCs into the popular monster they are today. Now every state has legislation allowing the creation of LLCs and California is no different. What Are The Advantages To Forming A LLC? ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
California Businesses Incorporating In Nevada
California is a notoriously bad state to do business in. Regulations, worker’s compensation and tax issues overwhelm companies. Seeking relief, many incorporate in Nevada. Unless done carefully, this decision can lead to disaster. Doing Business - Jurisdiction
Jurisdiction is a legal term used to define who has authority over something. Applied to this article, the term refers to the issue of which state has the right to regulate a business. In California, the issue boils down to whether y ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
California Business Entities – How Long To Get Approved?
You’ve done your research and have decided on a business entity. You’re chomping at the bit to open a bank account and get moving. You file your corporation or LLC with the Secretary of State and wait…and wait…and wait. Just how long is this going to take? California Filing Times
The California Secretary of State can be very slow when it comes to approving new business entities. Once you file the entity, you can sit around tapping your fingers for as long as two months. After two months, y ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Business Name – How To Pick One From A Legal Perspective
A business name can be a huge factor in the ultimate success or failure of the entity. Unfortunately, many people fail to give a lot of thought to it prior to moving forward. There are many factors to consider including something memorable, a name related to your area of work and, potentially, the availability of the domain name. Married?
Picking a business name is like getting married. You are going to have to stick with it till the bitter end. It is estimated a prospect will need to see ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Anti-Phishing Bill Introduced To Congress
Sen. Partick J. Leahy has introduced the Anti-Phishing Act of 2005 to Congress for consideration. The Act would allow federal prosecutors to seek fines of up to $250,000 and prison sentences of up to five years against individuals convicted for promoting phishing scams. Online parody and political speech sites would be excluded from prosecution. “Phishing” is an online scam used to deceive computer users into giving up personal information such as social security numbers and passwords. Phishi ...
Author: San Diego Business Law Firm Newsletter
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
Alternative Billing -- Win Win Strategies
Better Legal Billing: Time Slips for the Future Options Abound, But It's Often Up to Clients to Suggest Them
In the old days of legal billing, lawyer's invoices — usually a single page of elegant letterhead—contained only the phrase, "legal services rendered," and a hefty dollar amount. No time breakdowns, no list of activities performed or equipment and supplies used—just a final, usually shocking, charge.
But client demands and the evolution of sophisticated billing software have led ...
Author: Dan Harris
CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE
