As we begin 2025, small businesses will face a number of challenges that could impact success.  Most of those are due to rising costs from inflation, potential tariffs, and other drivers.  Others arise from the difficulty of putting your best face forward to increase sales and market share.  And yet others will arise from workplace issues including employee expectations, on the job injuries, and the challenges of managing employee performance.

Last year I wrote about the new FinCEN reporting requirement that would go into effect in 2024. Now, companies are required to report information pertaining to the individuals who own or control them, both actual owners and beneficial owners. There are exemptions, but those are primarily for companies that already report financial and other information such as banks, securities brokers and dealers, insurance companies, and certain large operating companies. The reporting requirement applies to corporations, LLCs, and other business entities.

Effective September 1, 2024, Texas will have a new court system for resolving certain business disputes.  The goal of the enabling legislation is to have specialized trial and appellate courts to determine large and complex business disputes with the hope of expediting proceedings, have the disputes resolved by judges with expertise, and deliver more predictable outcomes for businesses.

This article discusses two more scams and frauds that all business owners should protect against.