Business life cycle

Getting on with it

Wondering how to optimise and protect your ‘business as usual’?

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Things are moving forward and you’re wanting to ensure the fundamentals are in line with the way you see the business shaping. Small disputes and resolutions are likely cropping up.

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Understanding your situation

Your team is getting on with it...

You have worked hard and money is coming in, and going out. Your culture has formed but there may have been some disagreements along the way, either with contractors, suppliers, clients or employees. Maybe some of your contracts or policies need changing or enforcing.

New clients or customers means more personal data. What do you need to know about data protection and the dreaded GDPR? Our lawyers remove the risk and empower you with the strategies to keep you on track… smooth sailing.

Here are some of the challenges you may encounter:

Buying or licensing software and hardware

Most businesses are enabled by technology. Signing up to a software licence that does not meet your business needs or exposes you to unexpected liabilities could be an expensive mistake to make. Our specialist solicitors take the time to understand your IT and business needs so that your software licence agreements meet your business requirements.

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Software Licence Agreements 

Commercial Law 

Commercial Contracts 

Agency Agreements 

Dealing with disputes

We can help you across a broad range of commercial, financial and professional disputes varying from smaller claims to much more complex and high-value claims. Our dispute resolution solicitors have many years of experience in resolving disputes for businesses. Rest assured that you’re in safe hands.

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Business Disputes 

Commercial Contract Disputes 

Commercial Property Disputes 

Construction & Engineering Disputes 

Shareholder Disputes 

Data protection and data breaches

When a data breach occurs, we’ll work quickly to help you minimise its financial and reputational impact. While we deal with the ICO and claimants, you can get on with the day-to-day running of your business.

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Data Breaches & Incident Management 

Data Protection & Privacy Law 

Data Protection Health Check 

GDPR Compliance 

GDPR Training 

Employment litigation

Liability relating to claims before, during or after an employee’s time with your business can be costly, disruptive, and stressful. We’ll take on that stress for you so you can concentrate on the bigger picture – managing your business.

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Employment Law 

Defending Employment Tribunal claims 

Finding and hiring the right people

From templates for simple employment contracts to bespoke contracts for specialist roles or arrangements, including for workers and consultants, we can draft and review all of your employment documentation.

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Employment Law 

Employment Contracts 

Absence & Sickness Management 

Discipline & Grievance Procedures 

People management and growing your team

We can make sure that your talent policies are in order, that you are consultative and fair and have clear and transparent processes throughout your business. We can also assist with employee share schemes to attract and retain your staff whom you have worked hard to recruit and train.

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Employment Law 

Employment Contracts 

Employee Share Schemes 

Policies and agreements

Every business enters into commercial contracts daily, whether they are with customers, suppliers, distributors and so on. Whatever stage you’re at, we can help your business draft, review and negotiate compliant contracts to avoid disputes and litigation, and provide you with the very best representation if you do need to go to court.

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Commercial Contracts 

Agency Agreements 

Franchise Law 

Joint Venture Agreements 

Cloud Service Agreements 

Non Disclosure Agreements 

Drafting Subcontractor Agreements 

Investment Agreements 

Limited Liability Partnership Agreements 

Sale & Distribution Agreements 

SaaS Agreements 

Supply of Goods Agreements 

Software Licence Agreements 

Settlement Agreements 

Service Agreements 

Shareholders’ Agreements 


Our support in action

News and resources

Join us in celebrating the successes of our clients and discover what we’re doing to champion growing businesses across the UK. Here’s a selection of our latest  insights and updates.

Grow your knowledge

Updated 1 year ago

Employment Law

Employees working from abroad: What employers need to know 

Article

15 mins read

Updated 6 months ago

Business Disputes

Unpaid invoice? Your legal options explained 

Article

11 mins read

Updated 3 years ago

Commercial Property

Buying a commercial property in the UK – what is the process? 

Article

8 mins read

Updated 7 months ago

Intellectual Property

Trade mark infringement: A guide for trade mark owners 

Article

12 mins read

Updated 1 year ago

Data Protection

What happens if you get data protection wrong? 

Article

7 mins read

Client stories

Meet the client: Silvia Tarricone, MD of Assist Digital UK & Germany

Client stories

Framing success: Supporting photo printing company CEWE with bespoke HR training

Client stories

Manors Golf stays on course with a robust intellectual property strategy 

Client stories

Finding the balance: Negotiating Celerity’s contractual relationships

How we can help

Legal support that matches your ambition

We act as an extension of your team allowing you to focus on what’s really important

We mainly work remotely, so we can work with you wherever you are. You’ll benefit from a legal team familiar with your business, available on call to give advice and support when you need it. You can rest assured that we are just a phone call away.

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Scale up and down the support you require matching your growth and ambition

We’ll help you walk your own path with the legal fundamentals in place. We’re here to support you every step of the way whether that’s getting ready to sell or expanding out into new international markets.

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We take a step back to spot the problems and opportunities saving you money and potential trouble later

We cut out the legal jargon where possible, delivering a quality service equal to that of top 100 law firms, at a fraction of the cost. We make expert business legal advice more accessible.

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In-house experience giving you confidence to move forward

As entrepreneurs ourselves, we’ve been there before. Almost all of our lawyers have previously worked for a top 100 UK law firm or in-house at large international businesses. We’ll give you straightforward advice you need to move forward in your business journey.

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Testimonials

What our clients say

We pride ourselves on delivering an excellent service for clients, but don’t just take our word for it.

Over the years Harper James have helped us navigate complex legal issues and red tape, providing distilled options and legal consultancy that far exceeds the service levels we’ve previously experienced from more traditional law firms. The team act like our own in-house counsel so, regardless of which lawyer we work with, we feel supported and that they truly have our best interests at heart.

Michael Edwards Co-Founder, Inspire Group

Harper James is a brilliant example of a company disrupting a traditional industry. Suddenly Solicitors become relevant and accessible for start-ups & small enterprises, with the best in-class knowledge of all major legal areas. I’ve used the business now for a year, and the Enable plan has been perfect for budgeting my company’s outgoings, and has given me a piece of mind when tackling key, decisive issues. Thank-you Harper James!

Koral Ibrahim Founder & MD, The Ready House

We rely on Harper James to provide us with support across a full range of service areas, from commercial contracts and employment issues to fundraisings and investments. The team at Harper James are always available to provide us with cost effective, pragmatic and commercially focused advice.

Nick Holzherr CEO, Whisk.com

Fozia's guidance has been invaluable; we would not have been able to recruit the talent we have without her support.

Silvia Tarricone Managing Director UK & Germany and Chief Strategy Officer (Northern Europe), Assist Digital

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Having very senior solicitors on calls, who are acting for Celerity akin to in-house resource, allows us to punch above our weight legally and provides great credibility throughout the contracting process.

Craig Aston COO, Celerity Limited

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Pricing Plans

Unlike traditional law firms, we’ve designed our service plans specifically to meet the needs of businesses, providing flexibility, value and peace of mind. Our three transparent pricing packages are designed to give you the widest possible access to high-quality legal advice, whatever the size and nature of your business.

Many of our small to medium size clients choose to work with us via our Enable plan. On our Enable plan, you’ll receive advice from our senior solicitors on matters covering any of our services for just £159 per hour. That’s up to 75% off the rates of traditional city firms.

Engage

Flexible access to senior solicitors at highly competitive rates

An alternative to our subscription plans, offering access to full service legal expertise on a project-by-project basis.

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Extend

Comprehensive legal partnership for established businesses

Fully account managed and scalable annual subscription plan with support from a curated team of partners and senior solicitors, with up to 33% discount on our Standard Rates.

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Enable

Purpose built legal support for start-ups and smaller businesses

Monthly subscription plan for £259 per month, with £174 monthly credit and access to all legal services at 50% discount on our Standard Rates.

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Learn More About Our Pricing Plans 


Meet our team

We're one phone call away

Almost all of our lawyers have previously worked for a top 100 UK law firm or in-house at large international businesses. Many having achieved partner level or beyond, with at least 10 years post qualified experience.

Simon Gilmour

Partner and Head of Employment Law

Simon acts for employers of all sizes, particularly tech and manufacturing, and specialises in managing people matters, including TUPE, sales and acquisitions of companies, and restructures/redundancies.

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Ben Evans

Partner and Head of IP and Brand Protection

Ben is a dual-qualified solicitor and Chartered Trade Mark Attorney (qualifying in 2016) and assists clients with trade mark clearance searching, brand strategy and world wide trade mark protection as well as dealing with a range of intellectual property disputes and litigation.

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Becky White

Senior Solicitor - Data Protection & Privacy

Becky is a highly knowledgeable commercial lawyer, specialising in Data Protection and Privacy Law. She can add value to a business by drawing on nearly 20 years of in-house experience.

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Ian Carson

Partner and Head of Dispute Resolution

Ian joined our dispute resolution team in 2016 and has over 25 years of experience in handling a broad range of commercial disputes.

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Jas Bhogal

Partner - Corporate

Jas is a corporate partner at Harper James Solicitors, advising on corporate governance, mergers & acquisitions, venture capital & investments.

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Simon Smith

Senior Solicitor - Dispute Resolution

Simon is a very experienced dispute resolution solicitor and has worked in private litigation practice for over 25 years.

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See all solicitors  


Business life cycle

Are you ready to take off?

Previous

Time is focused on getting started

You’re likely getting contracts and policies in place to ensure the company structure is built to grow. Recruitment, director duties and shareholder agreements need locking down.

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Next

When it’s all about scaling up

You’ve got targets in mind on how you see the future of your business. You’re structuring for a certain scale, internationalisation and even potential exits.

Learn more