For almost every small business, Canada’s new anti-spam law will be a game changer. Unfortunately the changed game will be tedious and more expensive for most of you. It started out as a law to stop people and companies from … Continued
On May 8, 2014, I presented a webinar for www.SmallBusinessSolver.com on the legal ins and outs of crowdfunding in Ontario. Crowdfunding is a game changer for small business finance. Between $3-5 billion has been raised in crowdfunding efforts worldwide, through … Continued
One of the most important recent developments in financing for small businesses has been the rise of crowdfunding. Crowdfunding is when a bunch of people make small investments in a company through a crowdfunding portal (such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo), … Continued
I’ve talked about the pros and cons of different business structures in an earlier article, but what happens when you start out as a sole proprietor or in a partnership, and later want to incorporate? The transition needs to be … Continued
This can be a confusing topic. There’s a whole lot of stuff written about it, utilizing an abundance of excessively Brobdingnagian verbiage, but it’s usually a lot of talk about what a unanimous shareholder agreement (or “USA”) is, rather than … Continued
In the hustle and bustle of running your business, record keeping often falls by the wayside. Most small business owners put corporate record keeping somewhere below “eating gravel” on their to-do list. The corporation’s minute book is often never even … Continued
Firing employees is among the least comfortable tasks that face business owners. Whether it’s a result of poor quality of work, conduct in the workplace, budget cuts, or restructuring, dismissing an employee is rarely a decision that’s made easily. Employees … Continued
So, there I was, the dapper lawyer at the cocktail party, entertaining everyone with tales of legal derring-do. All were enthralled by my war story about finding a type-o on page 64 of a contract. “Tell us another!” shouted one. … Continued
One of the most common questions I get from entrepreneurs at networking events is how to structure their business. Actually, the conversation usually starts with a question about whether or not I “do incorporations” (the answer is yes, btw). It … Continued
So, you’re the proud owner/director/president/chief-bottlewasher of a shiny new small business corporation. “President” looks sharp on your business cards. You’re primed to flex your management muscle, and power the company into the marketplace. With that power comes responsibility and risk, … Continued