ContractStore Legal Business Blog

Southern Solar was set up in 2002 by Howard Johns, who is passionate about the environment and was always interested in renewable energy. The company fits solar panels for domestic, commercial and public buildings looking to reduce their environmental impact.

When Johns brought in additional shareholders, the company was still in its infancy. The high cost of setting up a solar power company was squeezing budgets to their limits so the group were reluctant to bring in lawyers having been quoted over £1000 for drafting a shareholders agreement.

Prospective shareholder Luke Hutchison suggested using  ContractStore’s “Shareholders Agreement for Three or More Parties“, but the group were initially wary. How would they know whether the document would cover what they needed?

Luke showed them the explanatory notes that users can read before purchase and pointed out that even with the tightest of budgets, the purchase price of £50  represented a relatively small risk.  Having read the notes, the group agreed to download the contract. A lawyer was consulted to check it over, at a much lower cost than initially quoted, and they all signed.

“We were amazed that the agreement could be finalised so quickly and at such low cost. It was really a fantastic find,” says Luke.

“If we hadn’t used the ContractStore we might have tried to avoid using a contract altogether, or pieced one together ourselves. This way we have a really solid agreement that provides the basis of trust that allows each of us to concentrate on building our company together. It also allowed us to focus our financial resources where it mattered most”

Photographers should all be aware that when photographing someone they ought to have the subject

Since 1st January 2007, every company in the UK must provide corporate details on its websites and in all emails that it sends.

The details you must display on both your website and on emails are:

• the company name (if this is different from the trading name then the difference should be made clear)
• the registered office address of the company
• the registration number and country of registration

The details you must make available on your website are:

• an email address where the company can be contacted (this is not needed on emails from the company)
• membership of any trade or professional association including the registration number
• the VAT number if VAT registered.

Make sure your website and email signatures are up to date right away.

ContractStore offers a free website privacy policy for

New rules about doorstep selling came into force yesterday, 1st October.

The Doorstep Selling Regulations cover all salespeople who visit consumers in their homes to sell any goods and services such as conservatories, double glazing, orthopaedic furniture and utility contracts.

The law has always provided a one week cooling off period when buying from salespeople whose visit has not been sought out by the homeowner. However, changes to the regulations mean that provided the transaction is for more than