I'm a web design start up (Mississauga / GTA). I guess I have to look in to legal aspects of a sole proprietorship? What kind of protection do I need. Honestly never thought of legal risks. Only thinking about where my next client is coming.

Well, I can’t really answer a question as general as that – what you need depends on your circumstances, and my answers here are not legal advice – they are for educational purposes only. :)

But there’s actually a ton of info on these general topics on my blog, at robhyndman.com. The archive system there is busted right now (being fixed soon) so you may have to dig a bit, but there are answers there. It explains, for example, why you might want to think about incorporating (there are non-legal reasons to do it too), and how you do it.

Generally, web designers should be thinking about having a proper form of customer agreement that protects each parties. Ideally, one that will not need to be lawyered every time you send it to a new customer ;)

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