Small Business Legal Advice: Small and Medium Enterprises

Setting up or growing a small business? Get the legal advice and services to make it a success - and keep it one.

We provide small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with practical, tailored, down-to-earth legal advice and support.

You've got the idea. You've put in the hard work. And now it's time to make your business a reality. We'll help you get it set up, or keep it on the right track. We can help you with all your business' legal needs, including:

Structuring your business
Employment contracts
Creating, reviewing and updating terms of trade
Registering your business
Asset protection
Intellectual property protection and trademarking

Business comes with a lot of uncertainty. Keep it to a minimum with the right team in your corner.

How our SME lawyers can help your business

Structuring Your Business

A business is a business, right? Not quite. There are a number of ways you can structure your business in New Zealand, each with its own pros, cons and obligations. Picking the right one will help you take your business where you'd like to go.

The main three structures in New Zealand are:

Sole Traders
Companies
Partnerships

We can help you identify the right structure for you, and make that structure a reality.

Sole Traders

This is where you're in business on your own. This is the most straightforward option. You won't need to register as a company, but it might make it harder to grow your business.

Companies

There are a few more requirements to meet forming a company, but it's a lot easier to grow the business, bring on other people, or eventually sell it.

Partnerships

Partnerships are popular among professionals. Unlike sole traders, it's where two or more people are involved. But you do take on a little more risk and liability than you would with a company.

Employment Contracts

If you have employees, you'll need employment contracts. We can set you up with employment contracts for your entire staff, and for individuals.

Terms of Trade/Terms & Conditions

Terms of trade, or terms and conditions, serve as the generic contract between your business and all the customers to whom you provide goods or services. They set out the processes, rights, responsibilities and obligations that fall on each party.

If you’re starting from scratch or want to review your existing terms and conditions, we’re here to help. Let us know what you want to achieve, and we’ll get you there.

"This was our first time needing to use legal services for the purchase of our company.

The Canterbury Legal team took care of all our requirements making sure everything was in place correctly. They were great to deal with and fast to respond with advice and answers to all our questions. We highly recommend them"

Laurie Sayers
September 2024

Registering Your Business

If you're starting a company or a partnership, you'll need to be registered. We can help you meet all your obligations and ensure you're set up for success.

Intellectual Property Protection

Your business will inevitably involve something that's unique to you, whether it's your branding or business name, or the novel works you create.

You'll want to make sure that no one else can use those. Our team can set you up with the right kind of intellectual property protection.