Our experienced business sale lawyers can advise you on the best way to manage your sale transaction so you can focus on your next venture.
Structuring the sale of your business
When you sell a business, how you structure the transaction can have a significant impact on both how the business is valued as well as the tax and other costs that you may incur. There are many things to consider, like whether to sell the business in its entirety or just the assets, what will happen to your employees and whether a restraint of trade is reasonable. Our experienced business sale lawyers can advise you on the best way to structure your transaction to meet your objectives.
Preparing for due diligence
Prospective buyers will most likely want to conduct a due diligence review of your business. This means they will want to review information about your finances, legal commitments, assets and liabilities so that they understand what they’re purchasing and identify any potential risks. Information in the due diligence may be used to negotiate some of the terms of the sale, like what warranties or indemnities you may provide. A confidentiality agreement may also be required before handing over any of your sensitive information.
What is a Section 52 statement?
A vendor’s statement or Section 52 statement needs to be provided if the value of your business is less than $450,000. This is a legal requirement and includes a range of important financial and tax information so the prospective buyer can make an assessment of your business.
Why MNG Lawyers
Our building sale lawyers can advise you on the best way to structure the sale of your business and explain how it will impact your ability to achieve your goals. They can also prepare all the paperwork and help you negotiate the sale contract with prospective buyers.
Frequently Asked Questions
As part of the due diligence process, you will need to give the prospective buyer access to a range of documents including:
- Copies of your business name and other intellectual property registrations;
- A copy of any lease agreements;
- Information on the assets and liabilities of the business so they can conduct some searches of their own;
- Details of what insurances you have in place;
- Copies of recent tax returns, business activity statements and financial reports;
- Major supply or trading good contracts; and
- Any other business agreements that may be relevant, like a partnership or shareholder agreement.