How does the tech person in a business partnership avoid getting screwed over by the business person? [more inside]
posted by giggleknickers on Nov 15, 2009 - 13 answers

I just graduated from law school on Sunday. I want to open my own law firm and practice criminal law after I pass the Oregon bar. But how can I get up to speed fast enough that I don't give my new clients poor legal services? [more inside]
posted by Happydaz on May 21, 2009 - 16 answers

What sort of state of organization are the financial records of most sole proprietorships in? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Feb 17, 2009 - 5 answers

Dick Jones from Robocop filter: Has there ever, in real life, been a convicted case of murder where a high profile, multi million/billion businessperson either killed or hired someone to kill a business competitor, either within the company or in another company? [more inside]
posted by arniec on Aug 7, 2008 - 16 answers

Can I run a criminal law practice out of my apartment? [more inside]
posted by pantheON on Feb 27, 2008 - 23 answers

There's some serious douche-baggery going on at my job that cost one of my colleagues his job today. How do I protect myself? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Feb 22, 2008 - 12 answers

Is it illegal for a business to close earlier than the closing time posted on their door? [more inside]
posted by thatgirl on Dec 31, 2007 - 44 answers

Can you really hold copyright to a business model/idea/concept, and disallow others from duplicating it? If not, then how is The Sampler able to do so? [more inside]
posted by divabat on Dec 21, 2007 - 26 answers

I'm considering starting an adult internet dating service in the US. What legal implications do I need to consider? (Some mildly NSFW details follow). [more inside]
posted by treepour on Jun 19, 2007 - 8 answers

How should I structure a growing consulting business, with partners, collaborators, and others that I want to be invested in the growth and success of the business? [more inside]
posted by pallen123 on Jun 2, 2007 - 3 answers

What books and websites should a non-business-major read to learn about the legal and practical aspects of starting a small business partnership in the US (MD, to be exact)? [more inside]
posted by Alterscape on Aug 27, 2006 - 7 answers

I'm thinking of writing a business book. My dilemma is that the topic would be about what I do in my current day job. [more inside]
posted by pman78 on Feb 28, 2006 - 9 answers

Is there a good online source for generic legal-ese? I am starting a business and I need to draft corporate bylaws, stock certificates, and a terms of service agreement. I would like to do this without involving a lawyer, if possible. [more inside]
posted by nyterrant on Oct 1, 2005 - 6 answers

BusinessLiabilityFilter -- Do we need product liability insurance for our start-up mail order business that sells repackaged craft supplies to kids? [more inside]
posted by acoutu on Sep 23, 2005 - 12 answers

I'm a freelance web developer who was recently fired by a client, had the amount of my invoice debated, and decided, for a couple of reasons, to write it off as a loss and tell them not to pay me anything. Today I got a check in the mail; do I cash it? [more inside]
posted by anonymous on Aug 21, 2005 - 17 answers

Help a bunch of idiots start a business maybe - advice required on how to go about it. [more inside]
posted by Leud on Aug 18, 2005 - 3 answers

What prepaid legal service would you recommend for business matters? [more inside]
posted by newgrl on Aug 7, 2005 - 6 answers

When did the practice of refusing to comment on a given issue due to pending litigation become an acceptable response? Is this a fairly recent development -- a result of living in a sue-happy nation? Is it just the vogue rhetoric of avoiding even a minimal amount of accountability? Or is it something else? For the lawyers out there, what are the ramifications of commenting? ... especially with cases like those involving the government?
posted by fourstar on Jun 29, 2005 - 4 answers

I am running a free Web-based service for friends and acquaintances. Lately, the volume on this service has been growing greatly. The next step is to move the service to a professional host. I am thinking of putting a paypal donation button on the site to help pay for it. Are there any legal or tax issues I need to worry about? Do I need a business license? What if I want to start selling Cafe Press items or running Google ads? I am located in the USA.
posted by Orkboi on Jan 16, 2005 - 5 answers

Ecommerce filter: Here at work we are attempting to understand/define the default business rules for taxation calculations within an ecommerce app. Specifically we are all tied up in knots over the application of rates, reporting issues, etc. Is there an industry standard for handling this aspect of a transaction? Who defines the standards, and how can I find out more about it?
posted by lilboo on Aug 12, 2004 - 2 answers

I am thinking of starting a very small business, but I have a few questions for those of you who have done so before I really make up my mind wheter to go forward or not. [More Inside] [more inside]
posted by shotsy on Jul 29, 2004 - 10 answers

AskLegalFilter: As a sort of follow-up to this thread, some friends and I have invented a game and have started to show it to representatives from game companies. There's been some interest, and before we can think about moving forward, I think we have to start with the legal stuff on our end. What sort of legal entity do my friends and I need to become so that someone can license intellectual property (mostly writing, as opposed to a unique style of play) from us and write us checks? And how can we do it for the least cost? Assume that we're more or less equal partners (somewhere between 33/33/33 and 35/35/30).
posted by blueshammer on May 3, 2004 - 11 answers