Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business - 19th Edition by Editors Of Nolo (Paperback)

About the Book

This book is for current and aspiring entrepreneurs, as well as managers and other critical small business employees, who want practical and comprehensive guidance on business laws--without paying a lot in legal fees. The book helps owners and managers successfully begin and run a small business, covering topics like raising startup money, protecting personal assets, negotiating leases and contracts, and more.

Book Synopsis

When you run a small business, legal questions come up almost daily. Ignoring them can threaten your enterprise. But hiring a lawyer every time a routine issue arises can hurt the bottom line. Fortunately, you have another alternative--Nolo's Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business.

This book will help you avoid costly legal and tax problems. A comprehensive and practical guide for opening and running a small business, this edition clearly explains how to:

• pick the proper business structure


• get licenses and permits


• negotiate a favorable lease


• protect yourself with the right insurance


• create binding contracts


• hire, fire, and manage employees


• cope with financial problems


• protect your personal assets, and


• save on business taxes.

The 19th edition is completely updated with the latest business tax laws and figures, and includes best practices recommendations for raising startup money, purchasing insurance, classifying workers, extending credit, and much more. This easy-to-read book provides a vast amount of information about setting up and running any kind of small business. It's filled with useful guidance, relevant examples, and simple explanations of complicated subjects.

Whether you're a sole proprietor or an LLC or corporation, a one-person business operating out of your home, or a larger company with staff, this book will help you start and run a successful business.

Review Quotes

"Get a basic understanding of small business legal issues... [with] this excellent resource..."The Wall Street Journal

"Pick up a copy of Nolo's Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business...." Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Balances its wealth of reproducible documents with straightforward 'how-to' instructions and advice..." The Bookwatch

"...exceptionally valuable, with forms and contracts written in straightforward language." American Reference Books Annual

"Provides instructions for completing the contracts required when forming a corporation, borrowing money, buying a business, leasing an office, hiring employees and selling goods." Reference & Research Book News

"Whether just starting a small business, or already engaged with a business is already up and running, legal questions crop up on an almost daily basis. Ignoring them can threaten any enterprise -- but hiring a lawyer to help with routine issues can devastate the bottom line. Now in a fully updated and expanded 15th edition, & The Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business by Attorney Fred S. Steingold (who practices law in Ann Arbor, Michigan and is an expert on small business law, representing and advising many small businesses) includes how to: raise start-up money, decide between an LLC or other business structure, save on business taxes, get licenses and permits, choose the right insurance, negotiate contracts and leases, avoid problems if you're buying a franchise, hire and manage employees and independent contractors, attract and keep customers (and get paid on time), and limit personal liability while protecting personal assets. Including the latest legal information and tax rules for small businesses, The Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business is an ideal and practical reference for the sole proprietorship, or an LLC or corporation, or a one-person business operating out of their home, or a company with a large staff leasing space. Thoroughly user friendly in organization and presentation, and very highly recommended for company, community, and academic library Business Management collections, & The Legal Guide for Starting & Running a Small Business is the next best thing to having a personal attorney on retainer. "Midwest Book Review, James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief