These schemes need to be good for employees and for your business –we also ensure they won’t encumber the sale of the company at a later stage.  Peter Jeffery, Partner

If you’re thinking about introducing an incentive plan for employees, it’s worth talking to a specialist lawyer. We are experienced in setting up a wide range of share option schemes, including tax efficient devices such as an EMI Option Scheme and simpler versions such as shadow schemes. We also draft bonus schemes and service agreements aimed at incentivising staff.

Any share option scheme needs to be driven by business needs.  However, as well as incentivising the employees it’s critical to ensure that the scheme will address key issues, for instance, if employees are to become shareholders what rights will they have? In what decisions will they be involved? And in which will they not be involved? Also,  if an employee leaves the company, what will happen to the shares they own? We can advise on all these issues and more to ensure your scheme works both for you and your employees.

It is also critical to ensure that if and when the company is sold, the scheme does not hamper or prevent a purchaser from buying the company.