Business litigation lawyer Tag Archives

Starting a small business in Oregon presents a range of legal and operational challenges. While a strong business concept and capable team are important to long-term success, proper legal planning is equally essential. Overlooking key legal requirements or making common compliance mistakes can expose a business to unnecessary risk, regardless of how promising the business plan may be. Below are several legal pitfalls that many small businesses encounter. Businesses facing these issues may benefit from consulting with Structure Law Group and speaking with an Oregon business litigation lawyer.

Choose the Correct Oregon Business Entity

The business entity chosen at formation can have significant legal and financial consequences as the company grows. For example, general partners in a partnership are personally liable for partnership debts, while members of a limited liability company (LLC) typically receive protection from personal liability. Understanding how different business structures allocate risk is an important step when bringing a business idea to market.

California stock corporations are owned by their shareholders who then elect directors. Directors, in turn, elect officers who handle a corporation’s day-to-day management. Accordingly, shareholders hold influential positions in a corporation through their voting power.

California requires corporations issuing more than one class of shares to designate the classes and/or series of stock in its articles of incorporation. A stock corporation’s capitalization, or “cap,” table is a type of ledger that designates shareholders’ percentage ownership and equity value.

Most early shareholders know the equity value of their ownership, but as companies add investors, assets, and shareholders, the shareholder ownership structure can shift. This may result in a dilution of shares, changing the structure of shareholder ownership. These changes can lead marginalized minority shareholders to file major shareholder litigation disputing changes to the corporate ownership structure. While dilution may not affect the financial value of shares, it can have a drastic impact on voting rights and ownership structure.

Articles Tagged with Business litigation lawyer

Common Legal Mistakes Made By Oregon Small Businesses

Shareholder Litigation and Disputes Over Ownership Structure