Q: I’m just starting up a company. How can I make sure I follow all regulatory regimes?

By Benjamin Posener– Managing Partner 

A: There are a number of regulatory regimes that will apply to nearly all businesses, including health & safety and equality & diversity. There are a number of other matters which most businesses will need to take into account in relation to rules governing the treatment of its staff and also data protection. Some businesses will have specific regulatory regimes and rules which will need to be taken account of. To ensure any new business is compliant and following all relevant regulatory regimes a new business owner should take the time to consider which regimes are relevant. As stated above, all businesses will be subject to health & safety and equality & diversity and the majority of businesses will need to have a data protection policy. However, it is important that all possible regulatory regimes are covered, as breaches may at the least cause the business to suffer time costs to come in line with the regulations or at worst cause the business to no longer trade. The best way that a new business can ensure that it is compliant with all relevant regulatory regimes is to employ the services of a professional to prepare, a staff handbook and procedures, an office procedures manual and if necessary a compliance manual. Such manuals can be purchased in template fashion which the business can then tailor to its own needs and requirements or as bespoke manuals following client meetings. To absolutely make sure that a new business is compliant with all relevant regulatory regimes, time and effort must be made to identify which regulatory regimes are relevant to the business and then create policies to make sure that all business owners, managers and employees are aware of their duties and responsibilities to ensure  compliance with all those regimes.