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Setting up a business involves complying with a range of legal requirements. Find out which ones apply to you and your new enterprise.

Every business needs to be aware of its obligations under minimum wage and equal pay laws, as well as recent pensions auto-enrolment changes.

What particular regulations do specific types of business (such as a hotel, or a printer, or a taxi firm) need to follow? We explain some of the key legal issues to consider for 200 types of business.

While poor governance can bring serious legal consequences, the law can also protect business owners and managers and help to prevent conflict.

You must comply with legal restrictions on employees' working hours and time off, or risk claims, enforcement action and even prosecution.

The right employment policies are an essential part of effective staff management. Make sure any policy is clear and well communicated to employees.

Whether you want to raise finance, join forces with someone else, buy or sell a business, it pays to be aware of the legal implications.

While sick employees need to be treated fairly, you need to ensure that 'sickness' is not being used as cover for unauthorised absence.

Marketing matters. Marketing drives sales for businesses of all sizes by ensuring that customers think of their brand when they want to buy.

Most pregnant employees are entitled to maternity leave and maternity pay, while new fathers are entitled to paternity leave and paternity pay.

Commercial disputes can prove time-consuming, stressful and expensive, but having robust legal agreements can help to prevent them from occurring.

As well as undermining morale, illegal discrimination can lead to workplace grievances. Employee discrimination is covered by the Equality Act 2010.

Whether your business owns or rents premises, your legal liabilities can be substantial. Commercial property law is complex, but you can avoid common pitfalls.

Home, remote and lone workers are becoming increasingly commonplace. Key issues include communication and how to manage and motivate people remotely.

With information and sound advice, living up to your legal responsibilities to safeguard your employees, customers and visitors need not be difficult or costly.

The right approach to consulting with and providing information to your employees can improve employee motivation and performance.

As information technology continues to evolve, legislation must also change. It affects everything from data protection and online selling to internet policies for employees.

Disciplinary and grievance issues can be a major burden to employers. Putting in place and following the right procedures is essential.

Following the right dismissal and redundancy procedures helps protect your business and minimise the risk of a legal dispute at tribunal.

Intellectual property (IP) isn't solely relevant to larger businesses or those involved in developing innovative new products: all products have IP.

Employment tribunal claims are a worrying prospect for any employer. A tribunal case is a no-win situation – even if the claim is unjustified.

Knowing how and when you plan to sell or relinquish control of your business can help you to make better decisions and achieve the best possible outcome.

From bereavement, wills, inheritance, separation and divorce to selling a house, personal injury and traffic offences, learn more about your personal legal rights.

IPSE warns of "devastating" gaps in support for self-employed

25 August 2020

The latest government statistics show that over one million freelancers in the UK are not eligible for state support during the coronavirus crisis.

The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) has warned that the lack of support for directors of limited companies and the newly self-employed is driving a drop in the number of self-employed workers.

IPSE is urging the government to consider ways to support "forgotten freelancer groups" in the event of a second wave.

Derek Cribb, ceo of IPSE, said: "The August SEISS statistics are a reminder that although the scheme continues to help a large proportion of the self-employed, over a million freelancers - including directors of limited companies and the newly self-employed - are not eligible for it. This is a stark omission that is devastating to hard working self-employed people across the UK.

"We are already seeing the consequences of the gaps in support in the steep drop in the number of self-employed people last quarter. A second grant opened earlier this week, still without even a nod to these forgotten groups, who now face yet more months with no support. With the threat of a second wave and further lockdowns looming, government must urgently consider ways to support these desperate forgotten freelancers."

Earlier this month, new data from the Office for National Statstics (ONS) showed that the number of UK self-employed workers fell by a record 238,000 in the second quarter of 2020. IPSE has said that the drop in self-employment is "almost certainly" because of gaps in self-employed support during the coronavirus crisis.

IPSE research also shows that self-employed quarterly incomes dropped by 25% after a record fall in the amount of work they were able to secure.

"In the second quarter of 2020, there was a disproportionate and disturbing slump in the number of self-employed in the UK - far more than among employees," said Cribb. "Going into a recession, we would normally expect a jump not a slump in the number of self-employed, as businesses look to the flexible expertise they offer."

Written by Rachel Miller.

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