Deciding whether or not to hire a lawyer like Aaron Kelly to help with your entertainment startup is not an easy one. While you will need an attorney who is well versed in startup legalities, engaging a counselor for your entertainment startup is a conscious choice. While it is important to understand that startups do need legal support, having an attorney on retainer for all the legal support you need may not be necessary. Considerations such as cost, time investment, and the risk-benefit balance all come into play.

Here we consider some of the important steps (or issues) a startup must face and determine whether or not it is advisable to hire a lawyer.

I am forming my own company. In most cases, you won’t need a lawyer to get your company started.  Legal advice may be important for you to understand the different types of businesses available such as sole proprietorship, LLC, and incorporation and to effectively weight the specific advantages and disadvantages of each for your purposes. 

An exception to this rule of thumb where founders of a company and their investors decide to come together at the start. The determination of equity rights might need to be systematized and set in stone at the onset. In the entertainment business, lawyers facilitate and negotiate distribution deals for entertainment projects. A lawyer might also be important for advising on the corporate structure or the place of incorporation.  

The American Pet Products Association (APPA) indicates that total pet industry expenditures in the United States reached $60.59 billion in 2015. Americans spent a total of $23 billion on pet food, $14 billion on supplies and over-the-counter medicine, almost $16 billion on veterinarian care, $2 billion on live animal purchases, and a little over $5 billion on pet services like grooming and boarding. Currently, 56 percent of American households have pets, with that number expected to increase. 

With an industry that appears to be recession-proof, there are many opportunities for an enterprising business person to capitalize on the willingness of individuals and families to own and care for animals.

If you are an animal lover yourself and have thought about starting your own pet business, here are some things you will want to consider.

Keep “business” in the pet business. Remember that starting a pet business is like any other business. Becoming an entrepreneur means that you will need to accomplish all the tasks required of any other business, regardless of whether it will be a traditional stone-and-mortar storefront or an ecommerce business conducted solely or primarily online. At a minimum, you will need to: 

Whether you live on the coast or inland, floods are always a threat. All it takes is a prolonged downpour and a few factors to come together for the perfect storm. Knowing how to assess your cars after a flood can be helpful.

Assessing Your Vehicle

If your car has flooded, then chances are you’re dealing with other flood-related issues as well. Before doing anything else, make sure your family is safe and you’ve taken necessary steps to prevent further damage to your property. Once you’ve done this, you can turn your focus towards your car. Here are some things to evaluate and monitor:

• Call the insurance company. One of the first things you need to do is call your insurance company. If there was widespread flooding in your area, your agent is going to be slammed with activity. The sooner you can get your claim filed, the faster it will be resolved.
• Check depth of water. Grab a ruler or tape measure and check the depth of the water in the vehicle. This will give you an idea of how serious the damage may be. It’s possible that the water never rose to a level to harm key systems and components.
• Calculate time of submersion. Estimate about how long the vehicle was submerged in water. The shorter the time frame, the more likely it is that you’ll be able to salvage the car. It’s also a good idea to note the type of water that flooded your car. Freshwater tends to cause less long-term damage.
• Look at the weather. What sort of weather is approaching in the coming days? Hot temperatures could put the vehicle at risk of corroding, particularly if your car was flooded with saltwater.