I am thinking of starting a profitable site with a partner. The question is what are the legal documents I need to protect both of us. Do I just write a document with all the details of the agreement (such as how to split profits, who did what, etc.)
if you are starting a business together I suggest you both sit with a lawyer and have him draw up the papers. this will secure that you both receive a fair share or clear any disputes that may arise when doing business with a partner.
you need to consult a CA who will prepare the partnership deed. Once that is done both of you need to sign in along with two witnesses. You just consult a CA or a lawyer and decide with your partner about your resource/assets distribution in case of any split. Not only this you need to mention how the profit is to be divided.. Bottom line is consult a lawyer or CA and he will explain all this to you
You need to consult with a lawyer, but before you do, sit down with your partner and think about every scenario that might happen in the future, and how you want to deal with it. I'm talking death, divorce, you make it big, you crash and burn, one partner wants out, one partner wants to bring in another partner, a partner wants to sell his interest to another person..etc. Write down your agreements. Then have the lawyer review and recommend. No point in paying the attorney to "help" you negotiate!
I agree with the other posters for the most part, but I wanted to add. The question you asked is what documents you need. Depending on whether you set up your company as a partnership, an LLC or a corporation will dictate what kind of agreement you need. For a corporation it's a shareholders' agreement. For an LLC, it's a members' agreement. And for a partnership, it's a partnership agreement. Definately you should have an attorney write the agreements and I commend you for thinking about this before getting started in business. You wouldn't believe how many people wait until there are problems or until the partnership blows up to figure this all out. If you have other questions, let me know. Deena Burgess, Esq. _________________________________________________________________________________ Any opinions are offered without knowledge of the specific law of your jurisdiction and with only the limited information provided in your post. No advice given here should be reasonably relied upon by you or any third party without consulting an attorney who is aware of all of the facts and law surrounding your situation. Any advice given here is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship in any way.
I have a partnership, and I will tell you from the good, and bad point of view. You need.. 1. An LLC. Specifically breaking out percentages, and dissolution terms. 2. An operating agreement. This is crucial. It spells out who does what, and so forth. You think this is not a big issue initiall, but TRUST ME it really becomes one later. It needs to spell out who is doing what, and what is breach of contract. Furthermore, if breached, it should spell out terms. This will be critical in the end.