Corporate Law Attorney in New York

Owning and operating a business can be a challenging experience especially in these turbulent economic times. This reality has led to the increased importance of protecting your business from possible pitfalls, whether they be external or internal, and protecting the structure of your business as well as the products or services your business provides.

We realize that entrepreneurs are a unique type of people, who burn the midnight oil trying to make their business a success. That’s why we are always available past traditional business hours to accommodate the special needs of our clients. We pride ourselves on our attentiveness to our clients’ needs.

With a focus on highly professional, expedient services to each and every client, our firm works tirelessly to understand every nuance of our client’s business before consulting them on the best strategy to handle their specific needs. In fact, many of our clients retain us to act as their “in-house counsel” in order to achieve the best results for their business needs. This arrangement has multiple benefits; we develop an in-depth familiarity with our client’s business, culture and legal needs; we maintain a long-term relationship, thereby facilitating an even further efficiency in service; and lastly we become an integral part of our client’s business management decision making, thus assuring a more streamlined progression of the businesses’ future.

The general corporate services our firm provides are:

• Formation of entities and preparation of related documentation
• Founders’ agreements, shareholders’ agreements, operating agreements, partnership agreements
• Buyouts
• Acquisitions
• Employment and consulting agreements
• Commercial contracts, including services agreements, partnering agreements, vendor/supplier agreements
• Structuring of equity ownership
• Corporate governance, board of director matters and voting agreements
• Dissolutions and liquidations
• Trademark advice and registration
• Escrow Agent Services

Get the Legal Protections Your Business Needs to Keep Running Smoothly

Martindale & Associates, PLLC understands that entrepreneurs often work around the clock to make their businesses thrive. That’s why we prioritize protecting your business from potential risks. We offer extended hours to cater to our clients’ needs.

With a focus on providing highly professional and practical service to every client, our firm works relentlessly to understand your business in all its nuances before advising you on the best course of action for you to take. Many clients choose us as their “in-house counsel” to ensure they get the best possible outcomes for their company operations.

This long-term collaboration helps us provide better service because we better understand our client’s business, culture, and legal requirements. We also become a vital part of our client’s management decision-making process, ensuring their businesses’ futures go smoothly.

Ways We Can Help Protect Business and Its Assets

No More Costly Legal Disputes Between Shareholders and Directors

A partnership or shareholder agreement is a legally binding contract that outlines the business’s operational procedures and delineates the owners’ rights and obligations. This agreement ensures that the owners are treated fairly and safeguards them from potential exploitation by other owners or third parties.

As your business expands, potential conflicts may arise. Having a partnership or shareholder agreement in place can help prevent costly legal battles by clearly delineating the rights and obligations of the business owners and establishing a process for resolving disputes.

At Martindale & Associates, PLLC, we can draft and execute shareholder or partnership agreements that protect the rights of both the owners and the company. Our team of highly trained and professional lawyers provides:

• Founders’ agreements
• Shareholders’ agreements
• Operation agreements
• Partnership agreements

This agreement can help maintain a healthy and productive business relationship between owners.

Safeguard Your Company’s Interest During Buyouts, Mergers, and Acquisitions

As your business expands, you may consider merging it with another company, buying out a partner, or selling it outright. If this happens, a corporate attorney may assist you in protecting your firm’s interests.

As your trusted corporate law firm, we will represent the interests of your corporation in negotiations between parties. Our team of lawyers will attend all meetings to help facilitate the process and act as a go-between. In addition, when your business needs financial assistance from lenders, we can provide you with a service to secure the loan.

In addition, we’ll advise you on what type of financing agreement you may need for your business, based on its size and scope. If any legal concerns or issues arise, our team of attorneys will represent you in court.

You concentrate on your job while we take care of everything else, including:

• Buyouts
• Acquisitions
• Dissolutions and liquidations
• Escrow Agent Services
• Corporate governance
• Board of director matters
• Voting agreements

Acquisitions and Financings

Acquisition finance is the process of obtaining capital to buy another business. This makes it possible for the people who want to buy the company to do so. They do this by getting access to the financing they need.

There are different ways to do this. Two methods, the most common, are to get a traditional loan or line of credit. Other options include debt security, small business administration loans, and owner financing.

With so many different ways to carry out the acquisition finance process, it helps to have an attorney on your side.

The acquisition process itself is pretty complicated. This is where it can help to hire us at Martindale & Associates, PLLC, as we can provide you with the best representation in New York.

Ensure that Everyone Fulfills their Obligations with Commercial Contracts.

If you are running a small business, you will likely need to use various contracts, one of which is a service agreement. A service agreement is a contract between a company and the service customer.

This type of contract outlines the services provided and how much the customer will pay. A service agreement benefits both the business and the customer, as it protects both parties and ensures that the company will be paid for its services.

At Martindale & Associates, PLLC, we specialize in drafting contracts that protect your business while maintaining good working relationships between you and your vendors, service providers, etc. Our goal is to help your business operations run smoothly and efficiently. Some of the contracts we can help you with include:

• Services agreements
• Partnering agreements
• Vendor/supplier agreements

Important Tip for Business Owners:

When you are unfamiliar with the language used in drafting contracts, it is advisable to hire a lawyer. This is to ensure that the contract is worded correctly and is binding. Otherwise, you might face legal consequences.

If a third party wants you to sign a contract, it is also a good idea to consult a lawyer to verify that you completely understand the terms and conditions of the agreement before signing. Your business might be at high risk if you do not clearly understand the deal. For instance, a bank may compel you to sign a loan agreement.

Protect Both Your Business and Employees with the Right Employment Contracts

When you hire a new employee for your business, sometimes they will sign an employment agreement. This legal document lays out the full extent of the rights and obligations of both the employer and the employee in black and white. This agreement provides employees with a clear understanding of what is expected of them and protects your company in case of any disagreements or misunderstandings. The employment contract will typically set out:

• How often salaries, bonuses, and commissions are paid;
• What benefits are included – this is often health insurance and education assistance;
• The employer’s job title and job description;
• A clause restricting the employee from performing any other employment that might be competing with their current position.
• A provision prohibiting an employee from working for a rival for a specified amount of time after leaving employment.
• A provision prohibiting the employee from soliciting business from the company’s clients or employing the company’s workers after departing.
• A Statement of no agency to establish that an employee is only an employee and is not authorized to sign contracts on the employer’s behalf.
• A Section on Terminating an Employee’s Employment, which emphasizes the grounds for doing so by the employer and the notice the employee is required to provide while quitting their position
• A declaration that materials and innovations developed by the employee for the company are the company’s property. The arbitration provision mandates arbitration instead of judicial proceedings in the event of contract or employment-related disputes.

You focus on finding the ideal candidate, and we’ll take care of the rest.

A Tip for Employers

When onboarding new employees, be sure to have them sign a confidentiality agreement. This will prevent them from divulging any essential corporate information. You may also want them to sign a non-compete agreement, which prevents them from working for or establishing a competitive firm.

Establish Your Start-Up Business the Right Way

Choosing the legal form of your business is a significant choice. How your business is set up could affect how much money you have to pay in taxes and how responsible your business is. How many shareholders will the firm have? Three main ways to set up a company are as a sole proprietor, partnership, or corporation.

Only one person owns a sole proprietorship, and the business’s money goes to that person. They also have to pay taxes on their income. This is the easiest way to set up a small business, but the owner is responsible for any business losses.

Two or more people can decide to form a partnership to run a business:

• They’re taxed personally, like sole proprietorships.
• All partners share equally in the business’s profits and debts.
• One general partner is accountable for all debts and obligations in a limited partnership.

This allows you to pay personal and business taxes and avoid personal liability for business losses. After incorporation, the industry is a C corporation; forming an S company requires another form (Form 2553). S corporations have limited liability like C corporations. S corporations aren’t double-taxed.

An LLC is like a corporation because it has limited liability, but it is taxed like a partnership. You can make an LLC with one member or with more than one member.

We want to ensure that your new business has everything it needs to succeed. At Martindale & Associates, PLLC, we are committed to helping our clients start businesses in every way possible. We can help you figure out what kind of business structure will be best for you and help you file articles of incorporation and get the proper licenses and permits.

We make the whole process easier by providing you with:

• Formation of entities and preparation of related documentation
• Structuring of equity ownership
• Trademark advice and registration

Let Us Help You Run Your Business Smoothly, Call Us at (212) 405-2233

We are more than happy to take care of all facets of corporate matters to ensure that your company runs efficiently. Contact us to speak to one of our professional and experienced Corporate lawyers.

We provide Corporate Law attorney services across 5 Boroughs of New York City; these include Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. We also offer our Business Law attorney services in Long Island and Westchester County.