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After years of hard work building up a business, the prospect of selling it on to another company or the current management team will be the light at the end of the tunnel. Unless you are a serial entrepreneur, a more leisurely life is ahead when the stresses and strains of running a business will be behind you.

JPP Law are proud to have commissioned some primary market research; The Start-Up Business Survey 2019.

When negotiating a contract it is easy to become fixated on the terms governing who will do what, by when and for how much. However, equal thought needs to be given to what happens if things go wrong and in particular your rights of termination.

From the hire of company cars to the shipping of goods, the term 'bailment' encapsulates one of the most common forms of legal relationship for those operating a business.

A merger occurs when two companies, which are often about the same size, agree to join together to form a new entity. Mergers are friendly, whereas acquisitions tend to be more hostile and occur when a target company realizes that they have no option but to ensure their survival by being bought by the other company.

All company directors have one overarching duty which is to promote the success of their business. This duty on one hand seems a simple notion but, as Mark Glenister a specialist in Commercial Law at JPP Law explains, differences of opinion about how success will be achieved can lead to boardroom disputes and have a detrimental effect on the company's success.

The opportunity to purchase a competing or complimentary business provides an important route to expansion, but it is important to be clear about what exactly you are acquiring in a business - whether this is via shares or assets.

If your business is involved in a dispute and it is proving impossible to reach an agreement, then it may be time to seek professional advice from a third party. Rather than heading straight to court, an alternative approach is to attempt to seek a resolution via mediation.

All businesses have times during which receipts of income slow down, suppliers do not deliver, and customers close or go to a competitor. While it is a necessary business skill to be able to take the rough with the smooth and concentrate on how to counteract unforeseen events, would you be able to spot the signs that your business is in financial trouble?

If you are the director of a private limited company in England or Wales you can take comfort from the fact that you will not generally be personally liable for any debts the company incurs while you are in post. However, there are exceptions and when they arise you need to seek prompt legal advice to contain the damage.