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Lawsuits And Liabilities: How To Protect Your Business From Both

23 October 2017 by Janet Myers

If you're going into business for yourself, you'll need to protect yourself against potential lawsuits. That's probably not something you want to think about right out of the gate. However, if you don't think about it, and take steps to protect yourself, you could find yourself in dire straits eventually. That's the last thing you want to have happen. To protect yourself from lawsuits, here are four steps you should take.

Hire a Good Business Attorney

When it comes to protecting your business from lawsuits, the first thing you need to do is hire a good business attorney. Don't wait until you're facing legal problems to sit down with an attorney. Instead, hire an attorney as soon as you open your doors for business. Not only will your attorney be able to make sure your contracts are in order, and that your new business is on solid legal ground, but it will also give you the opportunity to develop a good relationship with them before you're faced with a legal problem.

Watch Who You Do Business With

Now that you're going into business for yourself, your reputation is going to be crucial to your success. Unfortunately, conducting business with the wrong people can destroy your reputation, and put you in jeopardy of your own legal woes. Before you enter into business agreements with anyone, make sure you do your homework. If they've been accused of disreputable business practices, you might want to steer clear of them.

Don't Mix Business and Personal Life

When you own a business, the last thing you want to do is mix your business life with your personal life – especially when it comes to assets and liabilities. As soon as you decide to open your own business, sit down with an attorney and do the paperwork to incorporate your business. The act of incorporating yourself creates a legal separation between your business and your personal life. That means if your business gets sued, the plaintiff can't go after your personal assets to satisfy a claim.

Protect Yourself from Liability

Now that you're going to own your own business, you'll need to protect yourself from all types of liability, including personal injury claims. You never know when someone is going to injure themselves while on your commercial property. If it happens, you'll want to be adequately insured. Don't open for business until you have adequate insurance coverage.

Contact a business attorney, like Strauss Troy, for more help.

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