Why Your Business Needs To Retain The Services Of A Lawyer In The New Year

To keep a law firm or solicitor on hand to cater to all your
legal needs (or most of it), you can establish a written retainer
agreement between yourself or your business and a law firm. A
retainer fee is then paid to secure the law firm’s availability,
typically in the form of an annual fee calculated according to your
legal needs and other business considerations.

1. YOU PREPARE FOR UNFORSEEN CIRCUMSTANCES

Research has shown that the cost to fix basic legal problems can
be up to 20 times (or even more) expensive than doing things right
from the beginning.

Unlike hiring a lawyer on case by case basis, as you are slammed
with a law suit, a good relationship with a law firm should be
ongoing to even prevent or get you the best when the issues
arise.

When you work with a lawyer on case by case basis once the
lawsuit is over and the work is done, we are gone – until you end
up in court again! Good for us, but not so good for you.

The lawyer’s relationship with a client should be an ongoing one
where frequent contact is required to truly get the benefits of
working together.

2. IT CREATES A HIGHER DEGREE OF CERTAINTY

By having a solicitor on retainer, you have the peace of mind
that comes with knowing that reliable legal advice or
representation will be available whenever you need it.

For business owners, this is especially important, as they are
constantly grappling with a range of legal requirements from
corporate statutory filings and compliance, employment related
issues, pensions matters, due diligence, property and conveyance
matters, immigration and foreign participation in your business,
intellectual property, data protection and confidentiality issues,
tax matters and many more.

With a law firm on retainer, you can comfortably get the legal
guidance you need without worrying about the cost of each phone
call or consultation.

3. YOU GET THE RIGHT SKILLS SET WHICH IS FURTHER
DEVELOPED SPECIALLY FOR YOU

Every business will thrive on certainty than uncertainty and
will do better working with service providers who already
understand the company and its needs.

Instead of sourcing a new lawyer as and when needed, hiring a
law firm on retainer helps you “avoid the rush” which could lead to
a mistake when you have to contract one while an emergency has
arisen.

Retaining a solicitor also allows the firm to gain a more
in-depth understanding of your business’ interconnected challenges.
This way, you will be able to work with solicitors within the firm
who are best suited to your changing legal needs.

4. YOU BUDGET PROPERLY AND YOU SAVE MONEY

You know for certain how much you want to spend on the legal
aspect of your business even before the commencement of the fiscal
year. You also get all you need in legal services just for a
fraction of the cost.

If you frequently require the services of a lawyer, be it for
expert advice or representation, paying a retainer fee is far more
affordable than hiring an in-house team to handle your company’s
legal demands.

Let’s do this math. If you employ one inhouse counsel and you
pay her N300,000 monthly, you would have paid N3.6m in one year,
aside other benefits like leave allowance, official car, pensions
etc. She could give you some quality services. Again, you may need
several of her in-house to handle the workload as best desired.

But then you consider that you can have seven ( 7 ) or more
broadly experienced lawyers all working for you if you retain the
services of the firm they work with and this could be for about
half of what you would pay one person in the first option. Wow
!!

Having the right mix of legal minds on hand for any and every
issue, no matter how big or small the issue is, can also prevent
costly and time-consuming legal disputes, and help you avoid civil
or criminal liabilities in the long run.

5. YOU DEVELOP A LONGTERM RELATIONSHIP

Having a longstanding relationship with a law firm through a
retainer agreement means the firm can get to know your business and
develop a strong legal framework to protect your specific business
interests and help improve your company’s operations.

It also means your business will always be compliant with any
changes to legislation over time, and that your solicitors can
continuously work to find the best legal solutions to any problems
your business may face.

This is the time to make plans for your New Year

© ASTUTE SOLICITORS (Jimmy Abia & Co.)
Jimmy Abia, Esq
Legal Practitioner and Chartered Secretary
Writes in from Lagos

To keep a law firm or solicitor on hand to cater to all your
legal needs (or most of it), you can establish a written retainer
agreement between yourself or your business and a law firm. A
retainer fee is then paid to secure the law firm’s availability,
typically in the form of an annual fee calculated according to your
legal needs and other business considerations.

1. YOU PREPARE FOR UNFORSEEN CIRCUMSTANCES

Research has shown that the cost to fix basic legal problems can
be up to 20 times (or even more) expensive than doing things right
from the beginning.

Unlike hiring a lawyer on case by case basis, as you are slammed
with a law suit, a good relationship with a law firm should be
ongoing to even prevent or get you the best when the issues
arise.

When you work with a lawyer on case by case basis once the
lawsuit is over and the work is done, we are gone – until you end
up in court again! Good for us, but not so good for you.

The lawyer’s relationship with a client should be an ongoing one
where frequent contact is required to truly get the benefits of
working together.

2. IT CREATES A HIGHER DEGREE OF CERTAINTY

By having a solicitor on retainer, you have the peace of mind
that comes with knowing that reliable legal advice or
representation will be available whenever you need it.

For business owners, this is especially important, as they are
constantly grappling with a range of legal requirements from
corporate statutory filings and compliance, employment related
issues, pensions matters, due diligence, property and conveyance
matters, immigration and foreign participation in your business,
intellectual property, data protection and confidentiality issues,
tax matters and many more.

With a law firm on retainer, you can comfortably get the legal
guidance you need without worrying about the cost of each phone
call or consultation.

3. YOU GET THE RIGHT SKILLS SET WHICH IS FURTHER
DEVELOPED SPECIALLY FOR YOU

Every business will thrive on certainty than uncertainty and
will do better working with service providers who already
understand the company and its needs.

Instead of sourcing a new lawyer as and when needed, hiring a
law firm on retainer helps you “avoid the rush” which could lead to
a mistake when you have to contract one while an emergency has
arisen.

Retaining a solicitor also allows the firm to gain a more
in-depth understanding of your business’ interconnected challenges.
This way, you will be able to work with solicitors within the firm
who are best suited to your changing legal needs.

4. YOU BUDGET PROPERLY AND YOU SAVE MONEY

You know for certain how much you want to spend on the legal
aspect of your business even before the commencement of the fiscal
year. You also get all you need in legal services just for a
fraction of the cost.

If you frequently require the services of a lawyer, be it for
expert advice or representation, paying a retainer fee is far more
affordable than hiring an in-house team to handle your company’s
legal demands.

Let’s do this math. If you employ one inhouse counsel and you
pay her N300,000 monthly, you would have paid N3.6m in one year,
aside other benefits like leave allowance, official car, pensions
etc. She could give you some quality services. Again, you may need
several of her in-house to handle the workload as best desired.

But then you consider that you can have seven ( 7 ) or more
broadly experienced lawyers all working for you if you retain the
services of the firm they work with and this could be for about
half of what you would pay one person in the first option. Wow
!!

Having the right mix of legal minds on hand for any and every
issue, no matter how big or small the issue is, can also prevent
costly and time-consuming legal disputes, and help you avoid civil
or criminal liabilities in the long run.

5. YOU DEVELOP A LONGTERM RELATIONSHIP

Having a longstanding relationship with a law firm through a
retainer agreement means the firm can get to know your business and
develop a strong legal framework to protect your specific business
interests and help improve your company’s operations.

It also means your business will always be compliant with any
changes to legislation over time, and that your solicitors can
continuously work to find the best legal solutions to any problems
your business may face.

This is the time to make plans for your New Year

© ASTUTE SOLICITORS (Jimmy Abia & Co.)
Jimmy Abia, Esq
Legal Practitioner and Chartered Secretary
Writes in from Lagos