Welsh Law Archives

When Your Bank Holds Up Your Business Sale: What Can You Do?

You have negotiated the business sale, signed the agreement and arranged the handover. Then, just before closing, your lawyer identifies an unresolved bank security registration. A delayed PPSA discharge can turn what looks like unfinished paperwork into an urgent business problem. For a small business owner, the priority is straightforward: protect the transaction, get

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Buying a Business? Here’s What Your Lawyer Wants You to Think About First

Acquiring an existing company can be one of the smartest ways to grow — you skip the slow climb of building a customer base and brand from zero, and you step into a business that (hopefully) already has revenue, staff, and a track record. But an acquisition is also one of the biggest legal and financial commitments

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Why Your Minute Book Matters More Than You Think

If you run an Ontario corporation, there’s a good chance your minute book is sitting on a shelf somewhere, mostly forgotten. That’s a mistake — and one that can get expensive at exactly the wrong moment. Here’s what business owners need to know about keeping their corporate records current and what happens if they don’t.

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Incorporating a business in Ontario

Should You Incorporate Your Ontario Business? Here’s What to Know Not all business structures are created equal. If you’re operating as a sole proprietor or general partnership, you may be exposing yourself — and your personal assets — to more risk than you realize. Incorporating is one of the most significant steps you can

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Lessons from Spyce Girlz: Why Regulatory Strategy Should Be Part of Your Business Plan

Every food entrepreneur I know has a business plan. Market analysis, product roadmap, pricing strategy, distribution targets. The ones who have been doing this for a while often have a financial model, a co-packer relationship mapped out, and a launch timeline. What’s usually missing — and what the Spyce Girlz case illustrates in practical

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Five Hidden Legal Risks in Food Startups — And How to Avoid Them

When Lily Bond launched Spyce Girlz, she wasn’t trying to infringe anyone’s trademark. She was doing what food entrepreneurs do: moving fast, making decisions with limited resources, and trying to get a great product to market. The cease-and-desist letter that arrived later was a surprise — but it shouldn’t have been. Trademark risk is

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Brand Confusion and Consumer Perception: The Legal Test That Can Make or Break Your Name

Here’s a question that matters more than most food entrepreneurs realize: could a reasonable consumer confuse your brand with someone else’s? That question — deceptively simple on the surface — is at the heart of Canadian trademark law. It’s the test that determined the outcome of Spyce Girlz v. Spice Girls, and it’s the

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From Cease and Desist to Next Steps

It arrives in your inbox or by registered mail. A letter from a law firm you’ve never heard of, representing a company you probably have. It says your brand name infringes on their client’s trademark rights. It demands you stop using it — immediately. It’s a cease-and-desist letter, and for most small food producers,

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Why Trademark Classes Matter More Than You Think

When most people think about trademark protection, they imagine a straightforward process: you register your name, and you’re protected. If only it were that simple. Trademarks don’t work that way. They work by category — by ‘class’ — and the class you file in determines where you’re protected. Miss a class, and you’ve left

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