What Makes a Good Business Lawyer?

No matter the size, every business needs a skilled business lawyer at its disposal. However, actually identifying which business lawyer is right for your company can be a challenge. Knowing what traits to look for can help guide you to find the right lawyer for your business needs.

Reasons to Call a Business Lawyer

If you own a business and don’t have a business lawyer, it’s past time to call one. Business lawyers help at every stage of business creation and operation.

Whether you’re just beginning to draft a business plan or you’re already running a successful small business, a business lawyer helps ensure your company is protected from legal liabilities.

A good business lawyer will help guide you through the complicated process of planning and setting up a new business. If you’re operating successfully, a lawyer can review practices and documents and identify areas where you can end up in legal or financial trouble.

If you’re facing a lawsuit or need to take legal action against a person or another company, a business lawyer handles your case and works to achieve the outcome that protects your company’s best interests.

Traits to Look For in a Good Business Lawyer

If you’ve decided to hire a business lawyer for your company, often your first concern is finding the best one. No one wants a subpar lawyer. However, law firms are businesses, too.

Lawyers often put a lot of money into advertising and online marketing. They work to ensure their website looks impressive, their office is comfortable, and their receptionist is welcoming and helpful. So, how do you see past the presentation and identify that a potential business lawyer has the skills and experience your company needs?

Finding the best business lawyer is much easier when you know what traits you should look for during your search.

Practice History

Experience is one of the most obvious traits you want in a business lawyer. The longer a lawyer has practiced business law, the more they’ve learned. Legal skills like identifying loopholes in contracts, litigating in a courtroom, and closing negotiations take years to master.

The longer a business lawyer has practiced, the more likely they are to have the experience you want on your side.

Practice history also extends to practicing within a specific geographic area. A lawyer with an established presence likely has a better understanding of local laws and regulations, as well as business relationships both in your industry and with the local court system.

Business Experience

Your business lawyer should be experienced in the legalities surrounding your business. If you’re running a tech startup, a skilled business lawyer who mostly works in the real estate sector probably doesn’t have the industry experience you want.

In-depth industry knowledge is often essential for a business lawyer to protect your company’s best interests effectively. The more a lawyer has worked for companies like yours, the more likely they are to be aware of common legal challenges and compliance issues that crop up in your business sector.

Clear Communication

Communication is the foundation of a lasting relationship between a business owner and a business lawyer. Your lawyer’s job is to cut through the legal jargon, saving you time and confusion by explaining options or issues in terms that are easy to understand.

A conversation with your business lawyer should provide clarity, not confusion. Ideally, you want a business lawyer who can lay out the options and advise you on the costs and benefits of the different choices you face. Your lawyer should also be easy to reach and promptly return calls or emails.

The best business lawyers help you learn as you move through legal challenges together. Over time, your knowledge as a business owner expands as your lawyer coaches you on how to avoid legal mistakes and navigate common legal challenges.

Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills are an underrated but important element of a business lawyer’s overall ability to effectively achieve solutions. When you choose a good business lawyer, you begin a relationship that will ideally last for years. You want a lawyer you like and feel good about working with.

A lawyer’s people skills go on to impact far more than how much you enjoy the occasional meeting with your lawyer.

Whether convincing a disgruntled former employee to drop a lawsuit or working out a solution to a contract dispute, a business lawyer is often required to assess the situation and convince other parties to work together to achieve a resolution.

Hiring a Business Lawyer for Your Company

Once you know what to look for in a business lawyer, it’s time to begin the process of hiring one. A simple online search will bring up business lawyers local to your area, usually with top-rated firms appearing higher up in the search results.

It’s a good idea to put together a list of some of the lawyers you’re most interested in meeting. Reading online reviews and looking over a firm’s website will give you an idea of what sort of companies a lawyer works with, what sort of legal matters they help with, and what other clients have to say about their representation.

Before hiring a lawyer, attending consultations with at least a few different options is best. When you attend a meeting, bring information about your business and a list of any questions you have about fees, services, and other concerns.

Finally, select based on which lawyer has the traits and experience that best match your needs.

Putting Business Knowledge to Work

Business owners make a living off the ability to weigh pros and cons and make shrewd decisions that bring long-term gains. Hiring a good business lawyer is just another smart business decision.

Knowing what traits make a good lawyer and carefully assessing your possible options is how you put your business know-how to work in the pursuit of a good business lawyer. When you take the time to find the right lawyer, you can trust that you’re placing your company’s finances, reputation, and legal standing into capable hands.

Choose Pearlman, Brown & Wax, LLP

Choosing the right business lawyer is essential to the success and protection of your company. Our team is dedicated to providing exceptional legal counsel tailored to your specific needs. To partner with the best in the field, contact us today. Our expertise can empower your business to thrive. Make the smart choice by choosing Pearlman, Brown & Wax, LLP.