The Perfect Gift for the Business Owner

Never Ceases to Amaze

As an intellectual property attorney, I see my share of online train wrecks. The train wrecks are usually business owners who thought the law was one thing when much to their chagrin, it turned out to be quite another. Many figure since there is no way to understand ALL of the laws governing online commerce, it is not worth the time to educate themselves about ANY of them. They learned out the hard way what a bad strategy that is.

80% of the Benefit for 20% of the Effort

The Law of the Internet is not only complex, but constantly changing. Even if you awoke knowing everything there was to know about Internet Law (which no one does), your warehouse of knowledge would be outdated by noon. It is no wonder business owners faced with such a Sisyphean task, opt to tumble blindly onward. Little do they know for about 20 percent of the effort, they can spot about 80 percent of the issues which cause the most grief to most business owners. You do not need to know how to solve every online legal issue to succeed. Being able to spot the usual suspects is often enough to keep your business out of hot water.

Handy Desk Reference

No one book will solve all of your legal problems. Actually, by itself, a book is not going to solve any of your legal problems. CyberLaw, however, might just give you enough information to steer clear of the most common online legal problems in the first place. Some business owners never realize that spotting the issues is half the battle. Spotted in time, you and your attorney can address most online legal problems and avoid their potentially catastrophic consequences. 

Leverage the Opportunity

Many companies see the complexity of online legal regulations as a hindrance, while more savvy companies see it for the opportunity it presents. Understanding the why online laws are the way they are gives your company a leg up on the competition. You can expand your business more vigorously in areas of lax legal enforcement or where the law is well settled and pull back in areas of heavy enforcement or unsettled law. Most importantly, understanding the reasons behind the laws allows you to extrapolate your strategy forward. Where your competitors are busy digging themselves out of holes they never saw coming, you can be anticipating the changes two or three years down the road and reaping the subsequent rewards. If you know a slightly nerdy business owner who has been good this year, now is the time to reward him/her with a holiday gift that really will keep on giving.

Brett Trout