In this new year we must take into account that risk prevention is the trend that sets the tone in small and medium-sized companies around the world. After the pandemic, all business models had to implement mechanisms to ensure the integrity of their processes and personnel. Therefore, many CEOs decided that in order to achieve the sustainability of their projects, they needed to avoid certain legal errors that compromised their businesses. In this article we will explain what are the most common mistakes to avoid in a company in 2022.

Failure to register your company's trademark or patent

This is a very frequent mistake in professional practices in Latin America, where the legality of products and services is sometimes not the priority. Although in the legal frameworks of many countries it is necessary for all companies to register their trademarks and patents to be able to market their products without inconvenience.

In case of not doing so, it is possible that another person registers the product or service with other credits. Therefore, the most advisable thing to do is to guarantee the exclusivity of commercialization of what you are offering, through the legal protections offered by each territory. Once registered, in case your trademark or product is used without your consent, you can sue for trademark infringement and damages.

Verify that you are not at risk of receiving tax penalties.

This is important because in each industry there are penalties and sanctions depending on the area where they operate. So to avoid this type of problems, it is advisable to have a lawyer and an accountant who can establish the safest tax strategies for your company.

To do so, you must take into account the legal business framework of the territory where you are, at the same time that you comply with your obligations as an entrepreneur within the established deadlines.

Keep in mind that a company's reputation includes all aspects, from legal to operational. Therefore, you can avoid failing to comply with your obligations and falling into a tax crime by taking precautions in this aspect.

Failure to make the financial separation between the personal assets of the partners and the firm's assets

Financial and legal separation is important so that your company does not have operational errors. Therefore, each partner should be very clear about what assets and accounts are related to the business and what is the scope of the same to avoid problems in case of separating from the partnership.

In this way, if there is any dispute or problem derived from any action that affects the personal assets of the partners, they will have to prove that they had made a financial separation at the time, and that their property does not affect the personal assets of the partners. They must prove that they had made the financial separation at the time, and that the ownership of the same does not affect the assets of the company.

Not having a policy for data collection, social media management and other online activities.

Nowadays, it is essential for each company to know to what extent it has obligations with respect to data management. Generally, companies have personal and billing data of their customers, so their confidentiality must be guaranteed.

For some customers, the discretion of their data is appreciated by the recurrent use of your service. It is therefore important to gain the trust of users through good data management by the company. Let's remember that in legislations such as the U.S., consumer rights promote the security of personal information. So any violation of a person's integrity can have serious legal consequences for the business.

If you would like more information or need advice on this and other issues of criminal and commercial law, do not hesitate to contact us at contact us at. We also share with you our social networks so that you can keep updated on the legal topics that are in trend: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter y Linkedin.