BiG Tips: Lawyers can help when things go wrong, but are also there to help as you start investing, start a business, buy or sell properties, doing joint ventures, and more. Do you need help with business or other structures, contracts, licensing, trusts, trademarks or other things legal? Choosing legal advice tailored to your particular needs is vital. Most Law Societies list solicitors, barristers and their specialties.
Areas where you might need legal advice (often overlapping with accountants) are:

• banking and finance
• business sale and purchase
• business structuring
• capital raising
• construction and infrastructure
• corporate and commercial
• corporate immigration
• data and privacy
• disputes and litigation
• e-commerce
• employment
• franchising
• information technology
• intellectual property
• mergers and acquisitions
• patents
• property and leasing
• regulatory and compliance
• startups
• trademarks
• tax

How to find good lawyers and legal advice

MoneySmart (ASIC) has a section on where you can get Free legal advice in Australia.

The Law Handbook – Legal Services Commission SA, is an example of an extensive free resources from States and various organisations. It helps you understand the law that might apply to you and your finances, business and more.

Fortunately competition and increasing consumer awareness mean increased transparency and reliance on testimonials to help you choose a lawyer.
Here are a few online sites to help (I haven’t checked out the lawyers, but their guides look useful.
(Contact me with any feedback):

Find Your Investment Lawyer Here – Law Path
Hire your perfect lawyer They say: “Find, compare and hire lawyers on Australia’s largest lawyer marketplace”
How to Choose a Lawyer – Websters Lawyers, South Australia
How to Choose a Lawyer for Your Small Business – Rose Lawyers
How to Choose a Small Business Lawyer – SprintLaw
How to Find a Good Conveyancer or Solicitor – On Property

You’ll also find lots of online advice law firms, many with free legal articles and document/template libraries (sometimes a FREE first document), such as:

Lawpath –  Extensive Legal Document Library (Free first document)
LegalVision which has a huge team in diverse areas of law and technology. They say: “is a commercial law firm with a commitment to innovation. We bring together lawyers and technologists to deliver efficient and cost-effective legal solutions for SMEs, startups and corporates across Australia and New Zealand.”

Who can help if you’re being sued, want to sue someone?

As you can see, above people and groups listed above can give legal help, which may not involve conflict or disputes with others. Some lawyers specialise in acting for consumers and others if there is bad or unprofessional conduct, often called “plaintiff lawyers” (they act for people suing another).

You’ll find in BiG’s Guru Cops a lot of people or organisations that may be able to help.
Here are some ideas if you get bad financial advice, or have a financial dispute.

What to do if you’ve received bad financial advice  and watch All you need to know about financial disputes, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers