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Keep it Legal

Navigating the ins and outs of starting a new medical business can trip up the unwary doctor. Michael Rourke shows what to watch out for at the very start.

In every walk of life and in every profession, the last 20 years have seen radical changes in how individuals access services and receive professional advice. 

The most obvious change is, of course, the advent of email and the speed of communications. Naturally, there has always been progress, but the speed of change in recent years as a result of technological advances has been immense.

While this isn’t by any means limited to doctors, we are increasingly seeing medical practitioners who approach us for advice, wanting to engage in private business in a different way. 

With increasing use of smart phones and apps in recent years, there are doctors among the innovators. Individuals have seen the success of operators such as Babylon and wondered whether they could be part of the tech revolution.

The traditional issues that individuals must consider when starting a new business include a mixture of the legal and financial:

• What is the right legal structure – company, LLP, partnership or chambers model? 
• What are appropriate governance structures? 
• Crunching the numbers on the business plan; 
• Obtaining appropriate insurance policies.