Small business solicitor – Three key points to note before appointing one in Singapore

Small Business Solicitor:  In the United Kingdom, lawyers are divided into Advocates (who go to court) and Solicitors (who draft and prepare transactional legal documents).  Singapore on the other hand has a fused profession which means that as long as the lawyer is called to the bar in Singapore, he can appear before the court and also draft transactional legal documents, thus lawyers in Singapore are also known Advocates and Solicitors and officers of the court.

This article will look at three key things that a business owner should note when appointing a small business solicitor in Singapore.

#1: Faster – Speed of preparing transaction documents by the small business solicitor

A small business solicitor may be useful for your business if the contracts are relatively simpler.  Given that the small business solicitor may be specialised in simpler contracts appointing such a law firm may be useful if you need your documents to be drafted more quickly.  But usually the types of documents they draft may be more standard form in nature.

However, once the transactions increase in complexity, you may need to find a more specialised legal practitioner covering your area of business.

#2: Cheaper – Flexible fees

Some small business solicitors may be prepared to be more flexible with their fees.  Do check with them about this.  One way for the small business solicitor to charge less is to ask such small business solicitor to draft simpler documents covering the same key commercial points. 

#3: Better – Specialisation helps with document drafting

Some small business solicitors are more familiar with startup document drafting and some others are better at negotiating large private equity deals.  Whatever the case may be, you should ascertain the background and capability of your small business solicitor that you intend to engage to do your work.

In conclusion, appointing a small business solicitor to draft the documents for your business may be useful at the start.  But it also pays to engage a specialist commercial lawyer for your transaction to avoid being blindsided and take advantage of their commercial wisdom honed from many years of legal practice.

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