Innovators in Rural Community Economic Development
Tags: Business Development, Community Economic Development, Tool Development, Value Chains, Wealth Creation
Client Name: Ford Foundation
Location: North Carolina, Vermont, Online
Resource Type: Tools
Author Org: Wake Forest University, Yellow Wood Associates
Author: Steve Virgil, Jon Mayhugh, Shanna Ratner
Year: 2015
This guide is one of two pieces written to assist WealthWorks value chain coordinators or coaches in working with businesses and demand partners that are part of WealthWorks value chains. This guide is designed to walk readers through one of the most important legal issues that affect small businesses: entity selection. To select an entity is to decide how you want to define your business legally. The entity you choose can determine how your business is treated with respect to its tax liabilities, management, owner liability, efficiency, longevity, and transferability. It is important to have a solid understanding of why formalizing your business is important before you can determine which business entity is right for you.
The other guide is called WealthWorks Value Chain Business Law Guide and provides basic information on issues frequently encountered in building WealthWorks value chains such as how to think about contracting and intellectual capital, and ways to mitigate business risks. Taken together, these guides provide basic information on some of the common legal issues related to the business of value chain construction and operations. Neither guide should be viewed as a substitute for legal advice.
