Starting or running your own business can be a very rewarding experience. Many people that have started to work for themselves never want to go back to being an employee. More and more, secure full-time employment, is becoming less available and often small business development is the only solution to guaranteeing an income. How do you deal with all the complex issues related to your rights, responsibilities and how to protect yourself – often we don’t know or try to find out until we are confronted with a potentially dangerous or financially damaging situation? Do you need commercial or corporate lawyers? Here is a guide to help you get started.
Some crucial issues that must be address before starting a business are:

•  Business Structure. Your business can either be a Sole Trader, Partnership, Company or Trust. And this will be dependent on factors such as the type of business, set-up cost, tax requirements and the asset protection that you will need.
• Licensing, permits and insurances. These requirements are extremely business specific and may and most probably will have legal requirements from all government levels, federal, state and local. Look for the government website relative to you that will list out the requirements for your business.
• Occupational health and safety. If you are employing people or intending to employ people this is an extremely important area for you to understand. Making sure you are not a target of litigation by knowing your rights and responsibilities cannot be stressed enough.

Ways to get information:

• Online groups and other groups. There are many discussion forums and non-online groups and organisations that exist to help you understand your legal rights, responsibilities and protection. This is an excellent way to get free information. It must be remembered that these are only discussion groups and that you should always have information verified.
• Government organisations. Government organisations provide specific and a broad range of information, depending on the type of department. Federal government agencies offer the most broad ranging information and all have heavily detailed websites with comprehensive details on the huge range of issues. Naturally enough the Australian Taxation Department has a lot of information about your taxation requirements. You will need to refer to federal, state and local government websites to find out information appropriate for you. It is important to understand that you may get a lot of specific information but you are still on your own regarding how to go about it.
• Business lawyers. This is where you can get the most accurate information for your business or as a starting point for your business, as you are paying for information that is specific to your situation and business type. It may be a good idea to have an ongoing relationship with a lawyer so that they better understand you business or are better able to respond in crisis situations. It is important that you understand that you are relying on the information provided to you and you should make sure that you are dealing with a reputable individual or company. To be realistic, this is the only real option for anyone who is starting a business and the more complicated that you business is, the more complicated your needs will be. Even if you are starting a small Sole Trading business like selling home made products at weekly markets, it is worth knowing where you stand with a single simple consultation.

Businesses will always need the help of a professional who spent years studying and mastering the judicial system. For any commercial establishment or business, a commercial lawyer will be the main defender when legal dilemmas come your way.