Business and Commercial

Principal contact: Colin W. Cant - colin@charleswoodlaw.co.uk

Charles Wood & Son provides practical advice to all manner of businesses in Kirkcaldy, Fife and east central Scotland including sole traders, partnerships, companies, owner-managed businesses and SMEs.

We make the effort to get to know our clients and their business needs and tailor our services accordingly.

We aim to provide services at competitive prices and make sure you have complete clarity on how we will charge.

Please make an appointment with one of our lawyers to discover the ways in which we can assist you and/or your business, or read below for fuller details of the business and commercial services which we offer.

Corporate and Corporate Finance

• Corporate acquisitions/disposals (general M&A work)
• Corporate finance matters
• Conducting due diligence exercises
• Shareholder agreements and joint ventures (structural or contractual)
• Partnership agreements
• Assisting in solving shareholder/partnership disputes
• Start-up and expansion finance/angel investment work
• Group reorganisations/restructurings
• Refinancing and re-banking exercises
• Constitutional matters and preparing articles of association etc
• Documenting and implementing share option schemes for employees
• Director duties/corporate governance

Company Secretarial and Registered Office Services

We provide a comprehensive company secretarial and registered office service for clients, and can do so for a fixed fee depending on the size/complexity of your business. By allowing us to do these services, you are left free to do what you do best – concentrating on your business.

The registered office of a company is the address to which all correspondence and notices may be sent. The registered office need not be the same as the trading address. The registered office address must be a physical location and be situated in the country of registration.

Our company secretarial service includes:

• Company/LLP formation
• Registered office service
• Acting as company secretary
• Professionally maintaining your company’s statutory register
• Preparing notices, agendas and minutes of meetings of shareholders/directors
• Attending board meetings in an advisor capacity
• Meeting Companies House filing requirements including preparation and filing of all returns
• Registration of mortgages and charges at Companies House
• Amending a company’s constitutional documents
• Non-executive directorships (in certain cases)

Insolvency and Restructuring

• Pre-insolvency security reviews

• Corporate restructurings

• Insolvencies (receivership, administration and liquidation)

• Appointing and acting for insolvency practitioners (receivers, administrators and liquidators)

• Purchasing/selling the business and/or assets of an insolvent business

We also provide pragmatic advice and assistance to directors, shareholders and others whose businesses are facing financial difficulty.

Commercial Contracts

It is self-evident that a business should have robust commercial contracts in place. We advise on all types of commercial contracts including the following examples:

• Agency agreements
• Collaboration and partnering agreements
• Distribution agreements
• Franchising agreements (we can advise both franchisors and franchisees in relation to master franchise agreements, case specific agreements and related documentation)
• Licensing agreements
• Supply and purchase agreements
• Terms and conditions of trading (purchase and sale)

For a competitive fixed price fee depending on the size/complexity of the contracts in question, we can review commercial contracts and highlight any key commercial and legal risks/ liabilities. Please contact us for further details.

Business Reviews

Does your lease contain onerous burdens? Are your employment contracts compliant with current legislation? What would happen if one of your partners/shareholders suddenly announced he/she wishes to exit the business?

We can conduct as detailed a review of your business and/or supply chain as you require simply to give you peace of mind or to highlight any issues which we consider require immediate attention in the short term and any recommendations for you to consider implementing in the medium to longer term.

Commercial Property

We advise on the purchase, sale, leasing and mortgaging of virtually all types of premises or land. Please click on our Property tab for fuller details. Please click on our Property and Estate Agency Services section for fuller details.

Charity/Third Sector

We provide advice to corporate charities, charitable trusts and not-for-profit organisations on a broad range of formation and compliance matters.

Services for other Law Firms

We also offer our services to other law firms in two distinct ways. Firstly, we can offer advice to the partners of such firms on general partnership, administrative and business succession matters (including drafting partnership agreements). Secondly, we would be delighted to receive referrals from other law firms in conflict situations and/or where such firms might not be in a position to handle such work themselves.