We understand the complexities of the modern business world and stand ready to assist clients through the maze of legal, ethical, and regulatory challenges that await them. Being a good business attorney means being good at many things. Below is a sample of the areas of practice in which our business attorneys routinely find themselves working.
- Contracts: We have years of experience negotiating, drafting, and assisting clients with questions and disputes that arise in the context of contracts. The law encourages competent parties to form contracts for lawful objectives and no aspect of modern life is entirely free of contractual relationships. Even the ordinary consumer in his or her daily activities acquires rights and obligations based on contract law. So regardless of whether your contract questions involve a small sales contract or a multimillion-dollar construction project, we can help.
- Business Torts: Torts are defined as wrongful interference with others’ business rights. Included in business torts are such vaguely worded concepts as unfair competition and wrongfully interfering with business relations of others. Some of the other common causes of action include: (1) wrongful interference with contractual or business relationships, (2) wrongful entry into business, (3) appropriation of another’s name or likeness without permission, (4) defamation in the business context, (5) disparagement of business property or reputation. We are well versed in the nuances of all major business torts in Idaho.
- Commercial Transactions and Sales Law: In Idaho, commercial transactions and sales contracts are governed by Idaho statutes. These statutes are based on the integration of a half-dozen or so uniform acts covering commercial transactions into a single, comprehensive body of statutory law called the Uniform Commercial Code. We are experienced in working with all aspects of these statutes and the transactions and contracts they encompass.
- Banking: Most companies must develop and maintain a good working relationship with their bank or financial institution to ensure success and longevity. We understand this complex relationship and are able to assist in setting up the relationship, drafting or reviewing the contracts that control the terms of the relationship, or mending the relationship if it has soured.
- Creditors’ Rights and Collections: The term “secured transaction” may seem somewhat daunting because it is not a term used (by most people) in everyday conversation. Yet the concept represented by the term is one that anybody can readily comprehend: the need for creditors to have some assurance that debtors will repay their loans. We have experience representing both secured parties and debtors in all aspects of secured transactions.
- Agency: An agency relationship exists when one party, called the agent, agrees to represent or act for another party, called the principal. The principal has the right to control the agent’s conduct in matters entrusted to the agent. These agency relationships permeate every aspect of modern business life. By using agents, a principal can conduct multiple business operations simultaneously in various locations. A familiar example of an agent is a corporate officer who serves in a representative capacity for the owners of the corporation. In this capacity, the officer has the authority to bind the principal (the corporation) to a contract. Agency relationships are essential to the existence and operation of any business, regardless of its form, because only through agents can a business function and enter into contracts. We routinely advise businesses on agency issues.
- Employment and Labor: In Idaho, many typical employment relationships are governed by the common law doctrine of employment at will. Under this doctrine, either party may terminate the employment relationship at any time and for any reason—provided, of course, that the employment termination does not violate the terms of a written employment contract. This doctrine has been modified over the years through a myriad of state and federal employment statutes and court decisions that prohibit termination for discriminatory reasons and restrict the right of employers to fire workers. We advise business clients and individuals in all areas of employment and labor law.
- Business Organizations: A basic question facing anyone who wishes to start a new company is which of the several forms of business organization will be the most appropriate for the endeavor. In deciding this question, the business owner taking on the financial risk of the new enterprise needs to consider the advantages and disadvantages associated with each form. We help clients understand the differences and work hard to ensure that clients make the right choice.
- Government Regulation: In today’s economy, administrative agencies regulate many aspects of a business’s operation. Many businesses face both federal regulations and state regulations. Additionally, agency regulations at the county or municipal level also affect certain types of businesses. All of these agencies issue rules, orders, and decisions that are challenging for today’s business owner to understand and comply with. We are well versed in the complexities of administrative law and government regulation.
- Insurance: Risk is the probability of a potential loss based on known and unknown factors. Insurance is a contract in which, for a stipulated consideration, one party agrees to compensate the other for any future loss on a specified subject by a specified peril. Sound complicated? Essentially, insurance is an arrangement for transferring and allocating risk. The most common method of risk management is the transfer of certain risks from the individual to the insurance company. We have years of experience working with insurance, insurance contracts, and risk management.
- Intellectual Property: The need to protect creative works was voiced by the framers of the U.S. Constitution. Laws protecting patents, trademarks, and copyrights are explicitly designed to protect and reward incentive and artistic creativity. Some business processes that are not, or cannot be, patented, copyrighted, or trademarked are nevertheless protected against appropriation by a competitor as trade secrets. We assist business clients with their questions and legal concerns related to protecting their intellectual property.