As businesses seek opportunities for growth and relevance in today's marketplace, 2020’s top trends for small and midsize businesses blend solid basics with modern advances. Together with executive staff, tax planning professionals, and your Maryland business attorney, it is time to redefine your business plan by integrating time-proven strategies in a new and innovative way.

At some point, you and your business will need legal advice from a skilled, experienced attorney. However, many start-ups and small businesses have extremely tight budgets. Most entrepreneurs pay for legal services only after they realize they need an attorney. Unfortunately, they are overlooking a valuable asset for their company – a fractional general counsel.

A holding company is the parent company for one or more other companies known as subsidiaries. The parent company owns the shares and assets of the subsidiaries, but the parent company doesn’t participate in the day-to-day operations of each company. It just maintains oversight over the other companies.

If you are inspired to serve your community and help others, you might establish a nonprofit. A nonprofit organization gives you the ability to raise funds and provide a structure for accomplishing your mission. Consulting a DC fractional general counsel early in the process can help you ensure that you overlook none of the vital steps for starting your nonprofit.

Are you preparing to consult your DC fractional general counsel about selling your LLC (Limited Liability Company)? If so, there are some tax implications you might want to address with your attorney to ensure that you minimize any negative tax implications that could accompany the transfer of your LLC.

Did you have a great idea this year for a new product or service? If you have not created a legal entity for your new company, now is the time to do so. Forming a legal entity for your company offers a variety of protections for you and your business idea. A DC fractional general counsel can help you decide which business entity is best for your company and guide you through forming a business entity, including forming a corporation.

Government work can be very lucrative. However, before you can make money working for the government, you need to learn how to be successful when you bid on government contracts. Working with a DC fractional general counsel to prepare your proposal can increase your chance of winning the contract. Below are seven tips from experienced insiders that can also increase your chance of winning government contracts in 2020.

There are things that you cannot control such as the economy, natural disasters, and the changing needs and desires of consumers. However, you can prepare for some events by purchasing insurance, developing a disaster plan, preparing a business succession plan, and working with professionals such as a Maryland business attorney, accountants, and others to ensure you have adequate plans in place should the unthinkable occur.

This QuickStart guide for starting a business provides you with the basic steps to create a new company to protect your idea and give you the structure you need to turn your idea into a reality. A DC fractional general counsel can provide guidance and support throughout each step up the process.

A sole prop is the simplest and most flexible corporate form – but the personal liability that attaches to all business operations can potentially create a host of problems later down the road.

Pass-through taxation refers to how income from some businesses is taxed. Many businesses in the United States operate as pass-through business entities. A DC fractional general counsel can help you determine if a pass-through business entity is right for your company.

Articles of Incorporation create the legal entity for a corporation. The bylaws define the corporation’s purpose. Articles of Incorporation contain very general information, while bylaws have specific rules and regulations of the business. Bylaws explain the roles and responsibilities of the people who manage the corporation and set rules for the general operation of the company. A corporation’s bylaws also establish shareholder ownership rights. The corporate bylaws establish a structure for the company to ensure that all divisions of the company operate smoothly.

Before negotiating a Purchase and Sale Agreement, it is vital to understand the contents of the agreement. An experienced Maryland business transactions attorney can draft a Purchase and Sale Agreement that is tailored to the individual transaction.

A great employee benefits plan can help employers attract the best and most promising talent in 2020 and beyond. A valuable employee benefits package also keeps highly-qualified talent from leaving the company. However, many employers are unfamiliar with employee benefits. Talking with a business attorney or fractional general counsel can help guide you through the process. Meanwhile, check out this primer on employee benefits. It will help you understand some things to consider as you create an employee benefits package for your company.

A Limited Liability Company or LLC is a business entity organized under state law. The laws governing LLCs may vary slightly by state. The business is owned and managed by members who have limited personal liability as long as the members and the LLC maintain separation between business assets and personal assets. LLCs can have one member or multiple members. Many small business owners who do not want to remain sole proprietors or groups who do not wish to become partners choose an LLC as their business structure.

Choosing the type of business entity for your company has many consequences for your day-to-day operations and long-term growth. Deciding between a C-corporation and S-corporation can be confusing. Even though they are both legal entitles with some similarities, there are distinct differences that can benefit some companies. Our DC fractional general counsel explains the differences between the two legal entities and why your company may benefit from choosing one legal entity instead of the other legal entity in this article.

Many entrepreneurs discover that they need a competent general counsel at various stages in the business cycle. They need legal services to address matters related to intellectual property, employment matters, contract negotiation, contract review, litigation, and other legal issues. Few small-to-mid-size business owners have the budget to hire outside counsel a full-time, in-house counsel. Retaining a DC fractional general counsel for your company might give you the best of both options.

Are you fighting to defeat IRS penalties? If so, new court-approved ways to defeat IRS penalties can help you keep the money you earned instead of paying it to the federal government. As a Maryland tax attorney, I continually monitor changes in the tax code that benefit my clients and help devise strategies to avoid penalties and decrease overall tax liability.

As an employer, social media accounts can be a great way to vet and research prospective employees. An employer could violate a person’s legal rights by including social media accounts in a background search without obtaining permission from the applicant. An attorney can also help you develop a screening process and background search that might include social media accounts while protecting you, your company, and your employees from potential lawsuits and liability for violating employment and privacy laws.

A trust is a legal entity that can own title to property. The trust is established by a settlor (the person who transfers property to the trust) for the benefit of the settlor and/or other beneficiaries. A trustee appointed by the settlor manages the property according to the terms of the trust. A settlor can serve as the trustee under many trust agreements. A trust is a way to separate legal title for property from the individuals or entities who receive the benefits of the property.