The primary roles of a corporate lawyer

Corporate or commercial lawyers have a wide range of responsibilities that organisations require their expertise for. While the profession has been popularised in the media for negotiating big deals and executing high-profile litigation, the reality is not always this exciting.

Most lawyers in this field will either specialise in transactional law or commercial litigation. While many people understand the role of litigators, the jobs of corporate or transactional lawyers are less well known.

Above all, corporate lawyers intend to help businesses run their affairs in a way that avoids litigation. They make clear the responsibilities and rights of all involved parties should something go wrong, such as a breach of contract.

Let’s take a look at some of the main areas in which a corporate lawyer works.

Formation, governance and operation of business

A corporate lawyer will help businesses with the infrastructure of their organisation. This involves the creation of the legal entity and how it is set up at an organisational level.

Different types of business entities have different sets of liabilities that go with them. The lawyer who helps set up a business may also be called on to draft contracts for employment and non-disclosure agreements as well as many others.

Mergers and business acquisitions

A major part of large business is the buyout and inclusion of other businesses into their corporate entity. This process allows a business to acquire new assets as well as remove competition.

Corporate lawyers assist in this process by carrying out due diligence. This means evaluating businesses’ assets and liabilities.

Once this is done the lawyer or lawyers can negotiate the final stages of the deal and make sure that all parties are aware of their responsibilities.

Project finances

The development of company facilities and logistics requires a great deal of money and cooperation from different entities. Depending on the nature of the company these deals can vary in size and liability.

A corporate lawyer is able to help form a legal entity for the purposes of managing these projects and corresponding with other legal entities.

Venture capital

A corporate lawyer who specialises in venture capital can help a new business source the money they need to get things going. They also help the business to organise their operations and properly maintain their core structures after forming as a company.

This kind of corporate lawyer helps a business to grow and expand. The work they do here is less confrontational than mergers and acquisitions because it involves cooperating with other entities towards a common goal.