Huntley Legal's Blog

There are some changes on the way that you need to know about, especially relating to the online world. This article (and the next) tell you what to focus on.

This article applies if you're buying a software business or one that's heavily reliant on software, such as a firm that sells its professional services through the medium of software.

For example, I don't sell my legal services through any particular software. If I fall out with Sage, I can quickly switch to Intuit or Microsoft.

On the other hand, I use a provider for an online library that provides forms, templates and education, so their service is delivered entirely through software. They can't do what they do without their bespoke software.

Software is one of the things you should explore and investigate when you're buying a business that can't function without bespoke or nearly bespoke software. You really need to look at the issue in more detail and with a heightened level of awareness, than if you're buying a business that only uses software to do its year-end accounts and send the odd email.

In the old days of print and paper, businesses usually knew what to include on their business stationery such as letterheads and statements, and the internet seemed less formal by comparison.

The internet is now where most written business communication and marketing happens, however, the formalities can easily become sloppy.

When you’re a service business selling to businesses or consumers, there are certain things you need to include on your website. Some of the rules apply to all websites, and others only apply if visitors use the site in a particular way.

By the way, all this information also applies to your email signature/footer, as emails also count as ‘business stationery’. And, for some businesses, it might apply to your social media accounts too.

This article tells you more.

Many businesses are so focused on winning new business that, while they recognise a client may want to move on and leave them one day, they can’t imagine a scenario where they would ever want to lose a client deliberately.

However, unless you are so insightful that you never take someone on who initially seems charming but who eventually turns out to be awkward, it’s quite common for businesses to decide to part company with a client at some point. In fact, it’s normal and healthy. If you’ve never done it, you might be putting up with all kinds of nonsense that you’d be better off without.

This article looks at some of the issues to consider.

Hopefully, the working relationship you enjoy with your suppliers will go well, always and forever. But things don’t always go as smoothly as you hoped, and the time may come when you feel you have to part from a supplier. In this case, you’d want to extricate yourself from the relationship in the best way possible.

This article includes some of the issues to consider.

This article is offered as a wake-up call for users of high-pressure selling techniques online, also known as ‘dark patterns’.

Currently, the main protection for consumers from misleading sales and marketing practices is the Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. This is enforced in the courts by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

When the Digital Markets Competition and Consumer Bill comes into force, which is due quite soon, the CMA will have the power to levy fines directly.

For some time, the CMA have been investigating what is described as ‘online choice architecture’, or OCA.

Very broadly, and at the risk of overly crudely summarising all the refined academic learning on this subject, this is about the manner in which the websites where we buy things are structured, and describes how consumers can be influenced to make choices and decisions. In particular, the CMA is interested in the harms caused when decisions are made under pressure because of the OCA.

It all depends on the way the seller designs their site.

If you are a business that sells online, it’s a timely insight into where legislation and obligations are going in the fairly near future. Studies have already been done, the CMA are now pursuing investigations, and enforcement action has been taken.

For example, two investigations have been announced which bring the OCA features and harms to life...

In November 2021, the Department for Business and Trade together with the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) call for evidence around the standards of product safety in the UK, and relevant legislation and regulations.

The Government also proposes to look at ways of minimising the burdens of getting new products to market, while maintaining safety.

This was prompted by the need for updates in the light of increased digitisation around the way we live. For example, our changed shopping habits include a massive increase in online shopping, and then there are ever-changing issues to do with AI and automation. There are growing concerns around unsafe products being sold online, because of the lack of clarity about who is responsible for safety issues.

In this article, I’m looking specifically at online supply chains.

You’re probably familiar with the due diligence process that you should carry out before buying a new business, or that an investor will (or should) carry out before making a sizeable investment in any business. But you might be less familiar with the notion that you would apply a similar process to a potential new supplier. Depending on the circumstances, this may be just as rigorous and formal.

This article explores some of the issues you should consider during the due diligence review of a potential supplier to your business.

I am not sure if this is going to read like a blog post or a rant, or something of a hybrid between the two. Anyway, it contains useful information, so I hope you enjoy reading it.

This article follows When the going gets tough (part 1). We covered the context, some of the questions to ask when you exit, and what to do about your shares. We also started talking about director loans.

Scroll down to find more of the things to consider when you’re a shareholder/director who’s leaving a business in times of trouble.