Chris Fick & Associates

Home businesses – Is yours legal?

The sharp upsurge in businesses operating remotely as a result of the pandemic lockdowns means a lot more people working from home – most presumably in low-profile home offices, but inevitably some in the form of full-on business activities from home. What effect is that having on the property market? Work-from-home and what’s hot in […]

The Pandemic and Business Interruption Cover – Can You Claim?

It’s no surprise that our media has been awash with reports on the recent High Court judgment around a restaurant’s business interruption cover claims. The restaurant in question, like many other businesses of all types and sizes, has been suffering severe losses from being forced to close (and latterly trade under very limited conditions) during […]

Lessons for your business: How does the world’s most successful company keep growing?

Amazon is now regarded as the best company in the world – its market capitalisation is approaching R800 billion and its founder Jeff Bezos is the world’s richest man. Year after year in customer satisfaction surveys Amazon invariably comes out on top. Jeff Bezos recently shared Amazon’s secrets in his annual letter to shareholders. The […]

STARTING A BUSINESS IN 2017: THE PRIVATE COMPANY OPTION

“My best entrepreneurial advice is to start” (Dave Morin, entrepreneur, angel investor, CEO and co-founder of social network Path) In our last article in the series “Choosing the right legal entity for your business” we looked at the partnership option. Let’s move on to the private company option, where your business is owned and operated, […]

SELLING A BUSINESS WITH GOODWILL: BEWARE THIS IMPLIED PROHIBITION

When you sell a business including its “goodwill”, you will likely be prevented from opening up in competition with your old business by a “restraint of trade clause” in the sale agreement. Your 5 year restraint period lapses – what next? Restraint clauses have to be reasonable in duration, so somewhere along the line your […]