Rallying cry for positivity as business awards return

Ian Girling, Caron Khan, Tony Brown

Dorset Chamber held its Annual General Meeting on 1st December 2022 at The Hilton Hotel, Bournemouth. Attended exclusively by its members, this annual meeting was an opportunity to reflect on the year gone by and the plans for the future.

Dorset Chamber chief executive Ian Girling said at the AGM: “We all know the economic climate looks challenging but as businesses we must keep moving forward with a positive, although not naïve, attitude.

“I want Dorset Chamber to be leading from the front to support our members and the wider business community, and I urge everyone to keep talking business up rather than down.”

AGM 2022

Chamber president Caron Khan was elected for a historic third successive term at the AGM at the Hilton Hotel in Bournemouth – becoming the first person to serve three consecutive years in office.

Caron Khan said: “I truly believe that for the chamber, its members and the Dorset business community at large the future still holds wondrous possibilities if we can work together, support one another and lead the way as the dynamic forward thinking business leaders that we are.”

The AGM voted for Tony Brown to continue as vice-president. Honorary treasurer Stephen Mills – the longest serving board member in chamber’s 70 year history – stepped down after 19 years to be replaced by his fellow Mazars partner Lesley Fox. Long service awards also went to former presidents Paul Tansey and Simon West in recognition of their commitment and support for the chamber over many years.

Dorset businesses support the Festive Foodbank

A Christmas lunch followed the AGM with a raffle raising £1,265 for the Faithworks charity, which helps people affected by homelessness, food poverty, debt, addiction and lone parenting. Guests also donated hundreds of items – including food, socks and toiletries – for the chamber’s Festive Food Bank for Faithworks to distribute across Dorset. Ian Girling said: “Our deepest thanks go to everyone who donated items and prizes, and bought raffle tickets.

An exciting year ahead

Other plans for the year ahead include a Future Leaders Forum for young people under 30, an inclusivity and diversity forum and the Dorset Apprenticeship Awards as well as progression of the county’s Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP) and its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) support.

The Business Awards are back

Revamped business awards are set to burst back into life during a three-day festival of business being held by Dorset Chamber in 2023. The new-look Dorset Business Awards were announced at the chamber’s annual general meeting along with a major conference and exhibition over three days in October. For further updates on this, please ensure you’re registered for the Dorset Chamber newsletter.

FOCUS ON legal

with Frettens Solicitors

In business sales, warranties are statements of fact which the seller gives to the buyer in respect of various aspects of the business. If the buyer can show a financial loss as a result of a breach of warranty, they may be entitled to bring a claim against the seller for that loss.

A sensible buyer will almost always carry out due diligence on the target to obtain as much information as possible so that they can identify any areas of concern. In addition to this, the buyer will ask for warranties to be included in the purchase contract and these will very often relate to the key areas raised in the due diligence process.

Warranties should be tailored to the type of the business or the company being purchased but will also typically cover areas such as the financial position of the target, ongoing litigation, the contracts, employees, IT systems, intellectual property and more.

Sellers should think carefully about the warranties they are being asked to give and ensure that nothing could be considered misleading or is inaccurate. Sellers can limit the risk of a claim by making a disclosure. Disclosures are usually drafted in a disclosure letter, which forms part of the main purchase contract. If a matter is disclosed to the buyer before completion, it is likely that the buyer will be precluded from bringing a breach of warranty claim.

Whilst a buyer may feel that they are adequately protected by the warranties, this is not always the case. If there is a breach of warranty, the buyer cannot ‘reverse’ the agreement they have entered into (unless permitted to do so under the purchase contract) and there may be other limitations on the seller’s liability. It is therefore extremely important to ensure that provisions relating to warranties are effectively negotiated. For more on warranties, see the full article which can be found on our website www. frettens.co.uk/site/media-centre/

This topic is expansive and cannot be fully covered in a short column. For further advice, please contact us using the information below. Email: hgujadhur@frettens.co.uk Phone: 01202 499255