In an owner-managed business, the owners are also responsible for the management of the company. Owner-managed businesses benefit from several distinct advantages, such as a motivated workforce and strong personal connections. However, they can also face unique challenges, like succession and governance issues. To ensure your business’s continued growth, you need sound, pragmatic legal advice and support. That’s where we come in.
At Ashton’s Legal, we understand the diverse challenges owner-managed businesses face. With our commercially focused and dynamic guidance, you can embrace every opportunity, resolve problems swiftly, and take your business from strength to strength.
Our highly skilled solicitors feature in the leading law directories Chambers & Partners and the Legal 500, which recognise the best legal talent in the UK. Chambers & Partners notes that we ‘handle high value work with the dexterity of the main players in central London’, and the Legal 500 states that we have ‘the edge in client care’.
Our Bury St Edmunds Owner-Managed Business solicitors can help you with:
- Business acquisition or sale
- Business restructuring and reorganisation
- Ownership governance issues and governance documents
- Succession and estate planning, including wills and wealth preservation
- Protecting business from relationship breakdown, including pre-nuptial and post-nuptial arrangements
- Shareholder/partner relations and commercial disputes
- Trust creation and administration
- Commercial contracts
- Property ownership and planning issues
- Employment issues and HR Consulting
- Regulatory, licensing, health & safety and criminal defence
- Business recovery, insolvency and debt collection
- Debt funding and refinancing
As a multi-disciplinary practice, we have expertise in all of the legal areas relevant to owner-managed businesses, including corporate, employment, and property. We regularly assist clients of all sizes across all sectors, including construction, tech, manufacturing, and engineering.
Book a consultation with our Owner-Managed Business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds
Our owner-managed business solicitors are committed to providing first-class legal services at an affordable cost. To find out more, please contact our Bury St Edmunds office or use our online enquiry form to request a call back.
How we can help with Owner-Managed Business services in Bury St Edmunds
Business acquisitions and sales
If you are approaching the acquisition or sale of a company, our specialist owner-managed business solicitors can provide all the guidance you’ll require.
Our expert acquisitions and disposals lawyers will work proactively to support you, working with colleagues from various departments to help you, including our employment team, commercial property team, and regulatory and disputes team.
We can offer guidance in various ways, including, but not limited to:
- Carrying out buyer due diligence
- Assistance with corporate financing
- Help to make the necessary tax considerations
- Support with employment matters
- Advice on licensing and regulatory compliance areas
To find out more about how we can help you with business acquisitions and sales, click here.
Business restructuring and reorganisation
The success of your owner-managed company sometimes requires a restructure or reorganisation. Restructuring offers various benefits, including improved tax efficiency and increased profitability. The key to a successful restructuring is planning. You must identify your goals from the outset and select the procedure most likely to achieve them. When you work with our owner-managed business solicitors, you can be confident that your restructuring will have the desired outcome.
We can assist with all aspects of restructuring and reorganisation, including:
- Restructuring strategy
- Mergers and demergers
- Joint ventures
- Refinancing
- Capital reduction
Learn more about how we can help you with business restructuring and reorganisation here.
Ownership governance issues and governance documents
Governance refers to the processes by which your business is controlled. By running your business in accordance with a set of well-structured rules, you can promote effective management, harmonise decision-making, and secure its long-term success.
Our owner-operated business solicitors can advise on all issues relating to governance, including:
- Developing bespoke governance processes that are realistic in the context of your business
- Drafting governance policies
- Preparing governance documentation, such as shareholders’ agreements and articles of association
Learn more about how we can help you with governance issues and documentation here.
Succession and estate planning, including Wills and wealth preservation
Careful succession planning is crucial for owner-managed businesses. Developing a clear succession plan well in advance of stepping down facilitates a smooth transition and safeguards your financial future.
Succession planning involves many complex legal issues, including corporate, probate, and tax. Our team of owner-managed business solicitors comprises specialists across all key areas who collaborate to create clear, effective succession plans tailored to our client’s needs.
We can help with all aspects of succession planning, including:
- Wills and estate planning, including powers of attorney
- Business sales
- Wealth management
- Tax advice
Learn more about how we can help you with succession and estate planning here, and with Wills and wealth preservation here.
Protecting business from relationship breakdown, including pre-nuptial and post-nuptial arrangements
When you have spent time and money building a successful business, you do not want to risk losing it in a relationship breakdown. Our owner-managed business solicitors have extensive experience in family law and will implement the strategies required to protect your business. We may suggest that you enter into a prenuptial or post-nuptial agreement, whereby your business is kept separate from your joint assets.
Learn more about how we can help you protect your business from relationship breakdown, including pre-nuptial and post-nuptial arrangements, here.
Shareholder/partner relations and commercial disputes
When a business is built on personal connections, as many owner-managed businesses are, conflicts can be incredibly disruptive and tricky to resolve.
Our solicitors understand the need to approach disputes with sensitivity and tact. We aim for a swift settlement without recourse to litigation, thereby preserving personal ties and minimising any negative impact on your business.
Our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds can assist at every stage of a dispute, including:
- Advising on the merits of your position
- Negotiating a settlement with the other parties
- Pursuing alternative dispute resolution methods, such as mediation
- Representing you in Court proceedings
Learn more about how we can help you with shareholder/partner relations and commercial disputes here.
Trust creation and administration
A trust is a legal arrangement whereby one person (the trustee) holds and manages assets for another person (the beneficiary). Trusts are a great way of protecting wealth but they’re incredibly complex. It’s important to seek expert legal advice to evaluate whether a trust is appropriate to achieve your aims and understand its implications.
Our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds can advise on all aspects of trust creation and administration including:
- Advising on the suitability of a trust
- Setting up a trust
- Administering a trust
- Ending a trust
Learn more about how we can help you with trust creation and administration here.
Commercial contracts
Contracts are the building blocks of your business. They must be clear and accurately record the parties’ intentions. That way, everyone will understand their rights and responsibilities, and the likelihood of a dispute is reduced.
Our team of owner-managed business solicitors includes specialists in both contract drafting and dispute resolution. We have expertise in all commercial contract matters, including:
- Consumer contracts
- Supply chain contracts
- Licensing agreements
- Joint ventures
- Commercial contract disputes
Learn more about how we can help you with commercial contracts here.
Property ownership and planning issues
Whether your owner-managed business operates in the property sector, or you simply require premises from which to work, you need legal support to protect your commercial interests.
Our team of owner-managed business solicitors incorporates specialist property lawyers with experience in commercial landlord and tenant matters and corporate support work. Our expertise spans all key sectors, including technology, education, transport, and consumables.
Our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds have expertise in all property ownership and planning issues, including:
- Buying and selling freehold and leasehold commercial property
- Landlord and tenant work
- Portfolio management
- Planning matters
- Commercial property disputes
Learn more about how we can help you with property ownership and planning issues here.
Employment issues and HR Consulting
When an owner-operated business has grown from a fledging enterprise to a successful commercial venture, HR processes can take a while to catch up. The shared values of those in charge contribute significantly to the business’s success but can also present specific challenges, such as a lack of defined roles.
Our team of owner-managed business solicitors incorporates experienced employment lawyers and HR specialists. We provide a comprehensive HR consultancy service as well as ad-hoc legal advice.
Examples of the types of work our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds routinely undertake include:
- Devising HR policies and contractual documentation
- Succession planning
- Carrying out disciplinary procedures
- Redundancy and restructuring
- Employment law disputes
Learn more about how we can help you with employment issues here and HR Consulting here.
Regulatory, licensing, health & safety and criminal defence
Owner-managed businesses must comply with ever-increasing regulation in areas such as health and safety and data protection. Regulatory compliance should be high on any business owner’s priority list since any failings can result in substantial fines and even criminal prosecutions. Our regulatory experts will ensure your processes are legally compliant and will guide you through any regulatory investigation you may face.
Our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds advise clients on all aspects of regulatory law, including:
- Health and Safety Investigations
- Trading Standards Investigations
- Planning notices
- Alcohol licensing
- Business crime
Learn more about how we can help you with regulatory issues here.
Business recovery, insolvency, and debt collection
Unpaid invoices can be catastrophic for owner-managed businesses, which often lack the cash reserves to cover expenses such as salaries and rent. Our owner-managed business solicitors provide effective, cost-efficient debt recovery services for businesses of all sizes.
If your business is facing an uncertain future, timely legal advice is crucial. Our team of owner-managed business solicitors is comprised of insolvency specialists, dispute resolution lawyers, and corporate advisors who will work together to give your business the best chance of success.
Our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds specialise in all matters relating to business recovery, insolvency, and debt collection, including:
- Restructuring
- Administrations and liquidations
- Director and shareholder advice
- Advice on personal bankruptcy
- Recovering debt and enforcing Judgments
Learn more about how we can help you with business recovery and insolvency here and with debt collection here.
Debt funding and refinancing
Owner-managed businesses will likely incur debt at some point. Debt isn’t always bad; it can allow you to expand and meet financial needs you can’t cover outright. However, any debt you take on must be properly managed.
We can assist you in obtaining debt funding and advise on refinancing options. Effective refinancing can provide significant flexibility in debt management, freeing up cash to invest in your business.
Learn more about how we can help you with debt funding and refinancing here.
Why choose our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds?
Our multi-disciplinary team comprises specialists in all areas of law relevant to owner- managed businesses, so we can provide all the legal support your business needs to flourish.
Our solicitors are not only technically astute but are also attuned to the commercial reality of owner-managed businesses. Our advice is clear, pragmatic, and focused on identifying practical solutions to legal issues.
Our owner-managed business solicitors’ fees
We offer a level of service to rival that of central London firms for a fraction of the cost. Our billing processes are clear and transparent, and we will explain them at the outset of our working relationship. We will provide regular fee quotes and breakdowns and will be on hand to answer any costs queries promptly.
For more information, you can visit our pricing pages.
Contact our owner-managed business solicitors in Bury St Edmunds
Our owner-managed business solicitors are here to provide all the legal support you require. For assistance, please call our office in Bury St Edmunds, or complete our contact form on the right-hand side of the page, and we will be in touch.