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Legal Requirements for Businesses in the UK

The key areas where it is important for businesses to take legal advice include:

Company structure

Companies must ensure that they have the appropriate structure and that they have met the necessary legal requirements for establishing and operating in the UK.

Employment law

Businesses in the UK must meet their legal obligations to their employees. There are several key aspects that should be considered, including:

• terms and conditions of an employment contract
• the Working Time Directive
• immigration
• health and safety
• equal opportunities
• paternity and maternity leave
• pay (including the minimum wage)
• holiday allowances
• notice periods/dismissals and redundancies
• pensions and retirement.

Liability insurance

Businesses have a legal responsibility towards employees, customers and the public, and will require liability insurance in order to meet any legal actions brought as a result of negligence.

Contract terms

Businesses have legal responsibilities to both customers and suppliers and should, therefore, take legal advice on issues such as terms and conditions of contracts, obligations and service levels.

Protecting intellectual property

Businesses should ensure that they have the appropriate intellectual property rights for their products and services, and that they are not infringing upon the rights of other businesses.

Regulations

In the UK, companies must adhere to general operating regulations (such as the Data Protection Act) and specific regulations that apply to an industry sector or proposed business activity.

Health and safety

Employees, customers and suppliers must be able to operate safely when interacting with all aspects of a business (for example, workplaces must meet minimum health and safety standards).

Real estate

There are several important legal issues that companies must address when buying or leasing property or land. An expert who specialises in property law will typically advise on issues such as ownership, negotiating the best terms (for a lease or purchase) and will also carry out searches to check if there are any problems with the site or building.

Environmental requirements

Environmental regulations in the UK are dependent upon various factors including the type and size of the business, the industry sector and the specific processes being undertaken.

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