Legal Business Planning and Services

Bernie Dietz is a Virginia business lawyer and corporate attorney.  We specialize in business and corporate law and can assist your Virginia business with a wide variety of business law issues. We have the experience to handle a wide range of business legal work, including corporation and LLC formation, contract drafting and negotiating, lease negotiation and drafting, litigation, and more.

We represent entrepreneurs during the process of starting up a new business and established business owners with everyday legal concerns and problems. If you have legal questions related to your business, you can get solid answers.  We offer a consultation service to discuss your specific legal situation and provide you with the answers you need. 

Thinking of starting a business? Then read The Top 5 Reasons To Incorporate or Form An LLC and get off to the right start. In Virginia, you can choose from a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited partnership, corporation, professional corporation, limited liability corporation, and professional limited liability corporation. The selection depends on your goals and needs and should be specifically tailored to your situation.

We have helped hundreds of entrepreneurs and businesspeople set up their Virginia corporation or Virginia limited liability company. We can help you get set up correctly.

To learn more about setting up a Virginia corporation, visit our Virginia corporation formation page.

To learn more about setting up a Virginia limited liability company, visit our Virginia LLC formation page.

Need a Virginia Registered Agent? Check out our Virginia Registered Agent website.

Want to form a Virginia charity? An outline of the process of forming a Virginia non-profit can be found here.

Does your business need commercial space? Are you thinking of expanding to more office or retail space? Then be sure to read about Secrets Commercials Landlords Don't Want You To Know before starting the process. Controlling fixed costs is absolutely crucial for new businesses and so if you're considering renting commercial space, whether it be an office or a retail location, negotiating a lease that is advantageous for you is one of the most important things you will do. Landlords and commercial real estate agents have a lot of experience on their side and you should have experience on your side as well. We can work with you to negotiate a lease that best suits your needs.

Everyone knows that starting your own business can be risky. But there are steps you can take to protect your personal assets and family. Check out our Top 5 Tips To Protect Your Assets and learn how you can protect yourself in Virginia.

Especially in technology start-ups, your intellectual property is your most valuable asset. Make sure that your intellectual property is protected by having the proper agreements in place from the beginning.  We are experienced in drafting non-disclosure agreements, technology licensing agreements, employment agreements and other early-stage agreements. Check out our Internet law webpages for more information.

We deal with trademark and copyright issues every day and can help you protect your valuable rights. Read more on our Trademark and Copyright page.  Schedule a consultation with us to see whether trademark or copyright applications are right for your situation.

Thinking of buying a Franchise or Franchising your existing business? We have experience helping entrepreneurs become franchisees as well as helping business owners franchise their own businesses. We can draft and review Uniform Franchise Offering Circulars (UFOC's) and franchise contracts. In Virginia, all franchises must be registered with the State. We have successfully registered franchises in Virginia and can help you register yours. Read our Top Ten Checklist for evaluating franchises and get off to the right start. 

Thinking of selling your business?  We represent buyers and sellers of Virginia businesses and can help you.  The purchase and sale agreement is crucial - hire an experienced attorney to help you get that contract right.

We can also assist you with liquidation and dissolution of businesses that are shutting down, whether due to failure of the business or otherwise.

Call us today at 804-290-7990 for more information.