We know that everyone is worried about their job, their business, their family and their community.  As business lawyers, we stand ready to help.

We have put together this checklist of areas of concern to help you respond to the pandemic.

Workplace safety

  • What do you need to do to protect your staff, customers and suppliers?
  • Do you fully understand your duty of care under common law and pursuant to statute?
  • What are the new requirements that you must comply with?

Employees

  • Can you suspend peoples’ employment and send them on gardening leave?
  • Can you terminate their employment and, if so, what must you pay them?
  • What are severed employees’ entitlements?
  • What happens if employees abandon their employment?

Finances

  • Do you have the cash resources to ride out the crisis?
  • Can you renegotiate your financing facilities?
  • Have you considered informal repayment arrangements with your creditors?

Commercial contracts

  • Can you (or your suppliers) rely upon force majeure clauses in contracts or the common law doctrine of frustration to suspend performance or terminate the contract?
  • Are you entitled to preferential treatment from suppliers who have reduced stocks?
  • What are the consequences of defaulting under your contracts?

Leases

  • What happens if you can’t pay the rent on time – do you have any options?

Solvency

  • You have duties as directors to ensure your company is not trading while insolvent. Do you know how to buy time to restructure your business to avoid liquidation or receivership?
  • Do you know how to raise new capital quickly?
  • What does the Government’s ‘Temporary relief for financially distressed businesses’ package mean for you – as a debtor and as a creditor?

Our focus is on providing sympathetic, practical legal advice to help you deal with these issues. Please do not hesitate to get in touch to discuss how we can support you.

For further information please contact:

This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.  It should not be used as a substitute for legal advice relating to your particular circumstances.  Please also note that the law may have changed since the date of this article.