Whether you are starting out or changing your business structure we can help you make “Incorporated” or “Limited” a reality. We work with you to determine the best structure for your business and look after everything from filing the Articles of Incorporation to getting your Minute Book organized and keeping it up-to-date.

Already incorporated? We will review your Minute Book to ensure it is compliant with the requirements of the relevant legislation and can help you take the steps necessary to bring it up-to-date and will work with you to ensure it is maintained on a regular basis.

Not sure which business structure is right for you? Are you a solopreneur, or do you have partners, investors or employees? We will go over the options with you to help you decide if it is time to incorporate, or whether another business structure is more appropriate.

We have extensive experience in the area of bank financing. We have represented both lenders and borrowers and have worked on both the lender/borrower side of the financing equation, as well as the enforcement side. We use our experience and skills to guide you through the lending process from term sheet, to commitment or facility letter right through to reviewing and completing the legal documentation to put the financing in place.

We will work with you to draft, review and revise your business contracts, including terms and conditions, confidentiality agreements, terms of service, agreements of purchase and sale, term sheets, letters of intent, shareholder agreements, loan agreements, partnership agreements, non-disclosure agreements, leases, bills of sale or security agreements (just to name a few). We have partners that we work with closely in other specialty areas (including employment law, intellectual property and franchising) so that you can feel confident that if we cannot help, we will hand you over to someone we trust who can.

We always hope that the camaraderie and mutual intentions that exist when starting out in business will continue throughout. However, that is not always the case. A Shareholders’ Agreement helps the parties set out what will happen in the event that one or more of the shareholders wants or needs to exit (including as a result of death or disability). We ask those tough questions so that the parties get to decide, rather than leaving their fate to the courts. This Agreement will often also address mutual operating responsibilities, future financing obligations, and protection against unfair competition if the partners go separate ways.

Whether you are considering an asset purchase/sale or buying/selling shares, we will help to guide you through the process. The best time to seek legal advice is at the outset, before you have committed to anything. The process can be complicated and it is vital that the Agreement of Purchase and Sale accurately reflects what you want to achieve. We can help advise on the structure and will work with you to draft the necessary agreements, perform the required searches and close the deal, including attending to any financing.

Rollover, family trust, estate freeze, winding-up, dissolution, amalgamation, intergenerational transfer, business succession plan; these are all terms that can be daunting but are important as you develop your plan to maximize wealth, reduce taxes, and ensure a smooth transition of business from one generation to another. We work with you and your tax and accounting advisors to create and implement an effective reorganization of your business when the time comes to consider your future, and the future of your business in the hands of your successor(s).