1.   A friend and I have been talking about starting a business partnership. I would run the business and he would put up the necessary start-up funds. He agrees that I can buy him out at any time. We trust each other. Do we need anything in writing?

You should definitely put a written partnership agreement in place—both to protect the business, and the friendship! It should spell out, among other things, your respective partnership interests, who's entitled to make important business decisions, and what the terms and mechanism of a buy-out would be. The last thing you want is to get mired in a legal dispute while trying to survive in a new business.

2.   I was a salesman working on commissions for a company, and put a sizeable deal together. But before the deal was finalized, the company let me go, and now they don't want to pay my commission. Do I have any recourse?

If you were the one who produced the buyer who was ready and able to make the purchase from your company, the law says you're entitled to your commission. There are laws in place that protect people in your situation, even awarding legal fees if you win your case in court.

3.   I run a small company, with ten employees. One of them was hurt on the job, and it looks like she'll be out of work for a number of months, although she's receiving worker's compensation. Can I hire a replacement?

Yes, as long as you're not trying to punish her for filing for worker's comp. A businessman is entitled to keep his business running by filling vacant positions. If there are no openings for her when she's able to come back to work, your worker's compensation insurer will pay to find her another position.

4.   I hired a contractor to renovate my store. His work proved to be shoddy, and he's working too slowly. If I fire him and hire a replacement, what can I sue him for?

Generally speaking, if you establish that the contractor's work was substandard and in violation of the terms of your agreement, you can hold him liable for the additional expenses you incurred from having to hire the second contractor, less the amount of the first contract that you didn't have to pay him.