Minnesota Business Lawyers: Applying for a Business License

In many industries, obtaining a business license is one of the most significant prerequisites for doing business in Minnesota. Paradoxically, despite its importance, too many businesses resist involving Minnesota business lawyers in this process from the very beginning – at the stage of the business license application preparation. Instead, attorneys throughout Minnesota (including Minneapolis business attorneys and St. Paul business attorneys) are involved in the process only after the business license application is rejected by the relevant state agency.

There are two primary reasons for the late involvement of Minnesota business lawyers in the process. First, business owners believe themselves perfectly capable of filling-out a license application. Second, small businesses are always looking for a way to cut costs and think they are saving money by involving business lawyers only by the time of an administrative appeal hearing.

Both motivations are flawed. A business license application often involves much more than simply filling out the basic information and gathering the supporting materials (such as financial statements or criminal records). The key to a successful application is the ability to spot potential issues and fix the problems prior to the submission of the application to the government agency. It is true that Minnesota business owners are smart and energetic individuals perfectly capable of filling out an application. However, they often lack the necessary legal experience and training to identify potential problems and know how to fix them.

Second, it is much cheaper to involve an attorney at an early stage of the business license application process than to deal with the problems at an administrative appeal hearing. Prior to the submission of the application to the agency, the attorney should be able to review the application filled-out by the owner and all of the supporting materials, spot potential problems, and advise on how to fix these problems immediately. Even after the application is submitted and the relevant Minnesota government agency raises an objection, involving an attorney who may be able to negotiate the solution to the problem prior to the final agency determination may prove to be very cost-effective.

By the time the application is rejected, however, Minnesota business license appeal lawyers will have to deal with a prolonged process defending the business owner’s interests. Even worse, in many cases, the burden of proof may be on the initial applicant, which means, for example, that a business lawyer would have to prove that the government more likely than not committed an error of judgment (or some other legal theory).

In sum, litigation is almost always more expensive than the prophylactic measure of involving a Minnesota business license lawyer at an early stage of the business license application process. At the very latest (i.e. the last opportunity to save the application while lowering legal expenses), the business owners should involve Minnesota business lawyers at the time when they receive the first request for additional information from a relevant Minnesota government agency.

Sherayzen Law Office can help you at every stage of the business license application process, starting from the initial review of the application to dealing with the government agencies , handling the administrative appeal hearing, and litigating further appeals to the district court and higher appellate courts if necessary.

Call  to speak with an experienced Minnesota business license application lawyer!