How to position your company for success from a Legal perspective

The interest in entrepreneurship is at an all-time high. However, entrepreneurs will tell you that starting  your own business is both exciting and challenging.

One needs to understand and deal with many issues from legal, financing, sales and marketing, intellectual property protection, liability protection, human resources, and more. An oversight to one of this could end a great and impactful business.

One major mistake that most entrepreneurs do despite putting together a great research, writing a business plan or roadmap, and deciding on a business structure, most entrepreneurs tend to overlook some legal requirements involved and this has crippled many businesses.

Great businesses that have recorded spectacular success stories of early-stage startups growing to be multi-billion-dollar companies like Uber, Facebook and many others have occasionally found themselves in the wrong side of the law. These legal issues have led to costly consequences down the road.

Often, entrepreneurs aren’t willfully avoidant of these laws; they are simply unaware of what is necessary. So, what are some of the legal requirements to review and understand before launching or even when running your business?

What are some of the things that you need to understand before signing that contract? When it comes to finances and tax how best do you understand the law? Whether you’re a current business owner or are still deciding whether to take the plunge and start a company, it’s important to step back and make sure you take all the proper legal steps to ensure your dream is realized with the protection of a legal business entity–such as an LLC or corporation.

This is not as hard as it is perceived though. Join Michelle A. Ouma and Ng’arua K. Ng’arua of Busaidy Mwaura Ng’arua & Company Advocates, (BNAdvoactes) for a conversation on setting up your business to achieve maximum results within the set legal parameters.

This workshop in Nairobi will take place on Wednesday 16^th October 2019 from 11am – 1pm at Nairobi Garage // Cove Court // Watermark Business Park // Karen.

RSVP your attendance here!

See you then

About the speakers:

NG’ARUA K. NG’ARUA

Ng’arua is an Advocate of the High Court and Commissioner for Oaths. He is the Managing Partner.

He holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa and a Postgraduate Diploma from the Kenya School of Law. He was admitted to the bar in March 2015.

He began his working career with the Co-operative Bank of Kenya in 2011 where he was an assistant in the legal department. He then moved to Spire Bank Limited (former Equatorial Commercial Bank) in October 2012 where he worked for three and a half years in the Legal Department.

Here, he handled Recoveries, Litigation, Securitization and Documentation, general Conveyancing, Mergers and Acquisitions, Legal Opinions and Legislative Review.

He left Spire Bank in May 2016 and moved to Maarifa Education, a private equity fund investing in tertiary education across Africa and a subsidiary of Emerging Capital Partners.

His work at Maarifa was legal advice to the fund on the transactional risks, due diligence on potential acquisitions, review and drafting of documents required for these transactions, corporate structures and compliance with regulatory bodies in Kenya, Zambia and Uganda.

He was also in charge of tax-related matters such as drawing up transfer pricing policies and tax optimization. He left Maarifa Education in December 2016 to join BMN Advocates as the Partner in charge of Commercial Law. In January 2018, he became the Managing Partner of BMN Advocates.

Ng’arua is a keen follower of the local sporting scene. He is a member of Kenya Harlequin Football Club and currently serves as the Legal Counsel to Quins.

He is also part of The Three-Quarters Podcast, a local sports show preaching the gospel of looking at sports as a business.

He is also a big fan of the local Motor Rally circuit which he follows all over the country when time allows. In addition, he is an ardent football fan, a lover of theatre and a reader of political autobiographies.

MICHELLE A. OUMA

Michelle has an excellent track record in handling challenging Commercial, Employment, and Labour Relation Disputes. She is result-oriented and puts her client’s needs at the forefront.

She holds an LLB (Northampton University), Post Graduate Diploma (Kenya School of Law) and CPM (Mediation Training Institute of America). Michelle is also a member of the Law Society of Kenya, FIDA and Mediation Training Institute Kenya.

She has specialized in Litigation and Dispute Resolution in the areas of Commercial Disputes, Labour, Employment and Benefits related issues, Debt Collection, Banking, and Finance matters on behalf of a wide range of clients. She has also advised startups /companies on change of company structure as well the role of directors.

In addition to the foregoing, Michelle as a mediator has helped corporates and individual clients settle disputes through mediation. She has also assisted in construction arbitration matters and setting aside of arbitral awards, advising clients on out of court settlement of insurance claims and resolving shareholder disputes.

Michelle has trained some of the largest organizations employees on property distribution through succession and labour laws.