There are several different scenarios which a family business shareholders agreement can address when it comes to defining who controls the business, transferring management and ownership and establishing a timetable for succession. Many family businesses are comprised of active parents and their children.  In these businesses it is reasonable and…

In the second installment of the ten most common employment law mistakes made by business owners and HR managers Nick Milanovichand I look at the factors that are considered when determining reasonable notice.  In our experience, employers and HR managers often put too much weight on an employee’s length of…

What are the most common employment law mistakes made by employers?  That was the question put to arbitrator, mediator and independent workplace investigator Nick Milanovic and myself during a recent joint presentation.  Over the next few weeks will be sharing our view of the ten most common employment law mistakes…

I have always liked the term “accidental partnership” to describe family businesses.  It was coined by Toronto based family business advisor Aron Pervin and succinctly sums up the unique challenges many business owners face when working alongside family members.  After all, in a family business environment the owners of the…

As more and more people face an instable job market, the opportunity to determine ones future is becoming increasingly popular. Ingenuity and drive will make those start-ups successful. Starting out with the right business structure and understanding of some other fundamentals of business law will make that success a little…

In the first part of our series on preparing a business for sale I looked at the steps business owners can take to make the transaction faster, smoother and more lucrative. Often, one of the first things a potential buyer will want to examine are the employment contracts for the…

In addition to your financial and personnel records, a potential purchaser of a business will also want to closely examine the state of the contractual relationships with external third parties including key suppliers, licensees, landlords and of course customers. The first fundamental question is ‘are the contracts up to date’….

In our first two posts on mediating commercial disputes we addressed the steps that should be taken before and during the mediation process.  In our final post on the topic we address the best approach to presenting offersand negotiating a settlement. Give thought to how you structure your offer to…