In this day and age of lean budgets and concerns about return on investment, I find that many clients tend to shy away from calling legal counsel until the issue at hand has escalated to an uncontrollable level. I actually understand that, because, like my clients, I am a small business owner, with a limited budget and limited resources. I find myself watching every dollar and carefully assessing the return on my investment before clicking on my PayPal or writing a check for clicks and views, plaques and, most recently, the expense of being listed as a Top-Rate Lawyer in Tampa.  I even assess the return on legal research systems and online databases.

So how does spending to be listed as a Top-Rated Lawyer in Tampa compare with spending money on lawyers you may ask? It all comes down to return on investment. I am asked to sponsor groups, which I often do. I am asked to speak and mentor, which I gladly do, primarily for free. Lexis, WestLaw, bar associations and mediator organizations have pay-to-use and pay-to-list publications and systems.  The return on investment is fairly easy to see since my business comes to me by referrals and word of mouth, a little from the internet and mostly from reputation. I also spend some money with marketing firms, accountants, insurance, training and education and other counseling-like resources to gain guidance and to make sure that I am staying on top of  my game. The mostly costly decision I make each day about my business is the one which costs me a client or causes me to have liability for failure to deliver top quality legal services.

So how does that equate to the best time to call a business lawyer? It is before you make a decision that could cost you a sale or client or would create an undue liability for failure to deliver, breach of contract or violations of laws. For my clients, that means thinking about protecting intellectual property, providing standard or customized contracts that customers and suppliers are willing to sign, but still protect business interests, having important agreements drafted or reviewed and compliance with the laws, especially as it relates to employees and the environment so that the business is not shut down. At the Walk Law Firm, we help clients develop strategies for financing and introduce them to concepts and ideas that may be less familiar but ultimately are needed to successfully run a business. Our goal is to provide the legal counsel clients need while making sure they receive a good return on investment.

In the last few weeks, we have helped clients mediate and settle a wrongful discharge claim, resolve preference actions, navigate loan modifications  and handle a variety of after-the-fact situations that might have been avoided if we had a short conversation before a decision was made. This month, I have also found financing for a client who did thought Bankruptcy was the only option because we talked early and developed a strategic plan. After the fact, the legal fees plus the cost of settlement are often far greater than what one might anticipate in an early resolution or for a short conversation to set strategy.

For me, the best time to to call a business lawyer, is when you need to make tough decisions or when you are considering future growth and divestment strategies.  Consider a small retainer relationship with your lawyers and ask to have it cover periodic phone calls and questions. We do it for our clients so that clients can call whenever they need a little bit of legal counsel or advice before making a decision which could lead to a costly mistake.

To learn more, please visit our website at WWW. WalkLawFirm.com