Commercial Law
INTRODUCTION
We act for a varied and interesting range of businesses.
We often advise partnerships such as doctors, dentists and farmers and typically advise on partnership agreements and issues which arise at the outset and when partners die or retire. Succession planning is often important.
We have clients in very different businesses. We have recently advised businesses in the following sectors:
- Property Developers
- Financial Advisers
- Hotels, restaurants and cafes
- Music
- Television
- Shops and retail outlets
- Manufacturing
- Language colleges
- IT Providers
- Environmental Consultants
- Recruitment Consultants
- Food Growers
- Farmers
For more information on how we can help you, please contact us.
CASE STUDIES
SALE OF A SUCCESSFUL RECRUITMENT BUSINESS
As part of the retirement of the principal of a specialist recruitment company the sale of the whole business was negotiated. We acted in the sale including the transfer of all the employees, and assignment of the property occupied by the business, payment terms and the warranties given by the seller.
SUCCESSION OF A FAMILY FARM
A family farming 600 acres 3 sons with different interests. We helped structure the new farming partnership to allow for continued farming, use of the commercial units for new businesses and the refinancing of barns for development. This enabled the family to continue to farm whilst providing additional income and increase capital value to the different family members.
TERMS OF BUSINESS FOR A COMMERCIAL PHOTOGRAPHER
Cameras are expensive pieces of kit when you are a top commercial photographer, one way of recouping some of the costs are to hire out the cameras for specific high value jobs. Our client needed Terms of Business to ensure the hiring out was controlled and at a reduced risk..
OBTAINING POSSESSION OF A COMMERCIAL UNIT
A commercial landlord had a very poor payer as a tenant. We advised the full options available to him. He decided that his preferred route was to regain possession of the unit so he could rent it out at a higher rent to a good tenant. He instructed us to obtain an order from the court for possession.
THE SALE OF AN ENGINEERING/MANUFACTURING BUSINESS
After the principal of the business died his family was forced to consider his company’s future. The family decided to sell his company to a competitor. We negotiated the terms of the sale and purchase agreement and prepared all the necessary documentation to bring the matter to completion. The buying company was able to offer employment to the employees which was important to our clients.
REDUNDANCIES
A client in the Information Technology sector was finding the wages bill was not sustainable. We helped manage a full redundancy consultation process to ensure that the process was fair and minimised the risk of claims from the employees being made redundant. If an employer gets this wrong it can be ruinously expensive. Often it is a stressful experience for all concerned. By careful preparation we helped to reduce the risk and the stress of our employer client.
DEVELOPMENT
A client wished to develop his land for a significant local development. He did not have the spare capital or expertise to pursue a planning permission for the number of houses required. We helped him negotiate the terms of an option agreement with the developer in which he was guaranteed a minimum price but would also benefit from the real market value when the planning permission was granted. The risk of getting the planning permission rested with the developer.
With all the new development we have seen locally we have experience in many different ways of how clients may wish to enter into contracts with developers such as options, promotion agreements and conditional contracts.
*All photographs in case studies for illustration purposes only.