Top Reasons to Hire Outside Corporate Counsel

When you open a small business in Florida, from a sole proprietorship to an LLC or a corporation, the first thing on your mind may not be the legal issues that your business could face in the future. Yet businesses of all sizes have to contend with a variety of legal matters, from those surrounding the opening of the business and requirements for licenses under Florida law to employment law issues like contract disputes or discrimination claims. While many larger businesses have in-house counsel, hiring an in-house lawyer often is not practical for a smaller business or company. For smaller businesses, hiring outside corporate counsel can be an extremely smart choice. Articles in Medium and Forbes discuss some of the benefits of hiring outside corporate counsel, and we want to say more about some of the top reasons your business should consider hiring outside counsel.

Legal Help to Form Your Business 

When you are just starting to think about your business or beginning the process of forming your business, it is essential to have an attorney who can assist you with all the requirements of entity formation in Florida. From filing articles of incorporation to applying for licenses to drafting employment contracts, outside counsel can help with all legal aspects associated with business formation. 

More Cost-Effective Than Hiring In-House Counsel 

When you hire outside corporate counsel, you will not need to have an attorney as an employee on your payroll. As such, working with outside corporate counsel can be much more cost-effective—especially for a new startup or a small business—than hiring in-house counsel. In addition, a lawyer hired as outside corporate counsel typically will be classified as an independent contractor, meaning that your business will not be responsible for providing certain benefits that it would need to provide to an employee. In other words, by hiring an independent contractor instead of an employee, you can keep legal costs down for your business. 

As-Needed Assistance with Business Legal Matters 

As we discussed above, the lawyer you hire as outside corporate counsel likely will be classified as an independent contractor. Accordingly, you will not be required to use that lawyer’s services routinely as you might be required to do with in-house counsel. To be sure, you can work with outside corporate counsel as needed—you can use the lawyer’s services and pay for them only when you need them. 

No Need for Long-Term Commitment 

We mentioned above that your business can work with outside corporate counsel sporadically, or only when you need legal services. On a related note, you do not have to commit to outside corporate counsel for a long-term business relationship as you would need to do if you hired in-house counsel. 

Unbiased Perspective About Your Business’s Legal Matters 

Outside corporate counsel can often be extremely helpful in offering an unbiased perspective on your business’s legal matters. Since a lawyer serving as outside corporate counsel is not an employee and does not have a personal stake in your business, your lawyer can provide you with a more objective reading of some of the issues your business is facing. 

Contact a Business Law Attorney in Florida 

At the Law Office of Clifford J. Hunt, P.A., we routinely serve clients in the role of outside corporate counsel. If your business requires an experienced lawyer to handle one or more legal matters related to your business, a dedicated Florida outside corporate counsel attorney at our firm can speak with you today about your options. Contact the Law Office of Clifford J. Hunt, P.A. for more information.

Resources:

medium.com/@leonazoey/benefits-to-hiring-outside-general-counsel-for-your-business-8451d34c290c

forbes.com/sites/theyec/2018/10/15/what-to-look-for-when-hiring-an-outside-general-counsel-for-your-company/#307958386fc4