Corporate Law

You’ve built a great business, but what happens when you want or need to take a step back? Our Corporate Law team can help simplify succession planning by assisting with transition documents, such as Family Charters, Shareholder Agreements and bespoke Articles of Association, as well as management buy-outs and business sales.

Whether you’re evaluating acquisition targets, preparing for a sale, embarking on a joint venture or undertaking a corporate restructuring exercise, timely and trusted legal advice can make the difference between success and failure. Our corporate lawyers can assist with complex corporate transactions as your business evolves. We take time to understand your goals - and help you achieve them.

Selling your business can come with a large cash windfall and a large tax bill. For many business owners, it’s a once in a lifetime event, so it’s important to maximise your return and minimise your risk. From working with you to ensure that you’re business sale ready to exploring the pros and cons of a share versus an asset sale, our corporate lawyers can help you prepare for a successful and lucrative sale.

As your business grows, you might need to look at new ways to fund your current activities and future plans. Some corporate borrowing and lending arrangements can be riskier than others, so it’s important to check what is the best fit for your business – especially if it’s owner-managed. Whether you’re considering a structured loan, evaluating secured versus unsecured borrowing, or exploring how to finance an acquisition or a management buy-out, the team at Attwaters can provide trusted advice. Our corporate lawyers have extensive experience of reviewing different types of finance arrangements and can help identify any hidden risks or extras.

Natural disasters. Trade wars. Global pandemics. They can all impact your business and its ability to deliver. If your business contracts don’t allow for adverse situations, it could result in a costly contract breach or commercial dispute. Attwaters Corporate Law team, working closely with our Business Law and Dispute Resolution colleagues, can help reduce your risk with tailored contracts that future-proof your business and its profits.

Businesses rely on contracts every day, but they can quickly become outdated as relationships and regulations evolve. We help businesses and their owners establish solid contractual foundations to protect and promote their interests. From sponsorship deals and supplier NDAs to product warranties and customer license rights, our corporate lawyers will build a legal framework to encourage greater oversight and growth. Our team can also assist with drawing up employee incentive and share option schemes as well as progressing investment opportunities, such as venture capital transactions, early-stage funding rounds and private equity partnerships. With common sense legal advice from Attwaters, you can scale up your business with greater confidence.

Getting the legal foundations right when you start or join a business can prevent disruptive and expensive disagreements in the future. Businesses change over time, so it’s important to think about how future scenarios might be handled. Whether you’re joining a limited liability partnership (LLP) or setting up a limited company, Attwaters Corporate Law team provides practical legal advice to assist so you can establish the right corporate framework for your business. For example, we can assist with drafting LLP or general partnership agreements, shareholders’ agreements and bespoke Articles of Association, to help you succeed today and safeguard tomorrow.