Press

Business attorney Shavon Smith, founder of the SJS Law Firm and author of “Tell Me About the Hard Part: Five Steps to Help Businesses Face, Solve & Prevent Problems," said business owners need to invest in identifying and protecting their intellectual property, including patents, trademarks and trade secrets. Those steps, along with staying on top of the operation of the business, will net owners more in the long run, she said.

“Well-run companies with strong financials and clean books will get the highest valuations, as will companies that have some aspects of tech connected to it that buyers can update and expand the use of,” Smith said via email.

Shavon Smith, founder of The SJS Law Firm, said business owners that are worried they will be hit by higher tariffs should start talking to customers now. That reduces surprises and leaves room to work out new pricing structures.

"Expanding this tax credit would make that much more affordable, helping get more businesses started and making it more likely they survive that crucial first year," Smith told Newsweek. "I was heartened to see the attention paid by Vice President Harris to the issue of small-business finances at Tuesday's debate, a sign that she will push hard for this very valuable tax change if elected."

Shavon J. Smith, a business attorney, said businesses are closely watching the election to see how it may affect their prospects next year.

"A lot of business owners that I've spoken to feel like there's a holding pattern," Smith said, "When there's an election upcoming, kind of you pull back on certain things, maybe you pull back on hiring, you pull back on new initiatives, just to see what may happen. And I certainly think that may be the case here."

Small businesses could struggle more than their larger counterparts,” said Shavon J. Smith, founder of Washington-based SJS Law Firm. “Larger enterprises have the ability to shift costs around, but small businesses have to absorb costs in ways that are more harmful.”

The termination of federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs marks a pivotal shift in the landscape for minority-owned businesses across America. This isn’t just another policy change—it represents a fundamental restructuring of opportunities that have supported minority entrepreneurs for decades

Businesses should prioritize proactive measures they can take to prevent an event from happening in the first place. It’s uncommon to find your attacker or recover stolen money or data once it’s gone. Once a cyber attacker has what they want, they are ‘lost in the wind.

It costs the average small business owner around $40,000 to launch and support that business in the first year. This is a large hurdle for many potential entrepreneurs. To combat this issue, Vice President Harris wants to increase the tax deduction for small businesses to $50,000, rather than the current tax deduction of $5,000. Businesses would be able to claim this deduction until they turn a profit.

Expanding this tax credit would make that much more affordable, helping get more businesses started and making it more likely they survive that crucial first year. I was heartened to see the attention paid by Vice President Harris to the issue of small-business finances at Tuesday’s debate, a sign that she will push hard for this very valuable tax change if elected.

Earlier this week, I had the privilege of discussing Vice President Harris’ new initiatives to support small businesses with the talented journalists from Hofstra University’s acclaimed campus radio station, WRHU-88.7 FM. Check out the insightful conversation in the comments for more details!

As principal of The SJS Law Firm, PLLC, Shavon Smith counsels a variety of businesses, including start-ups, franchisees, government contractors, and professional services organizations, as well as technology, construction, and design firms. Distilling her experience with a broad range of challenges faced by her clients, Smith has written Tell Me About the Hard Part: Five Steps to Help Businesses Face, Solve & Prevent Problems, providing readers an approach to identifying and resolving emerging problems that is easily applicable to businesses regardless of their size or industry.

Although cyber attacks can happen to any business, certain industries may be more likely to be targeted — particularly those that access or store a lot of sensitive client or customer data or information. Shavon J. Smith, a Washington, D.C.-based business attorney and founder of SJS Law Firm, works with small management and IT consulting firms that contract with big businesses and are therefore given access to their information, but are viewed as less secure because of their size.

In 2009, Black attorneys represented 1.71% of law firm partners. Today, Black attorneys represent 1.81% of partners. According to the National Association for Law Placement 2017 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms, “women and minority partners remain fairly dramatically under-represented in U.S. law firms,” with women minorities being the “most dramatically underrepresented group” of all.

Managing the day to day operations of a small business can be a never ending set of tasks. One way to avoid getting overwhelmed is to get annual legal checkups. Check out this podcast with Darryl Maxwell, a Managing Attorney at the D.C. Bar Pro Bono Center, and Shavon Smith, founder of The SJS Law Firm, PLLC, as they discuss the components of a successful legal checkup.

Throughout one’s legal career you will get advice aplenty: Take this bar, work in Big Law, don’t work in Big Law, go into this practice area, don’t practice in this city. The list foes on. But there is one piece of advice I have heard in every stage of my career from lawyers of all stripes: do pro bono work.