Corporate & Commercial Lawyer at Mensimah & Co.
The legal mistakes I see founders make, and how to avoid the expensive ones.
Meet your expert
Akosua is a corporate lawyer with 16 years advising businesses on incorporation, shareholder agreements, contracts and disputes. She has seen partnerships collapse over handshake deals and companies lose investors over sloppy cap tables. Her content is educational; specific legal advice requires a formal engagement.
Barrister & Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Ghana; LLM
Areas of focus
A closer look
Handshake partnerships, unsigned shareholder agreements, personal guarantees and the four other decisions that quietly destroy businesses. Educational content, not legal advice.
The seven clauses that matter most in a commercial contract, in plain language, and the questions to ask about each.
An anonymised case: two founders, one successful business, no agreement, and a three-year dispute. What the paperwork would have cost versus what its absence cost.
Three years in, profitable, no shareholder agreement. How do we fix this without it turning into a fight?
Start with a conversation, not a document. Agree the principles first - ownership, salaries, distributions, what happens if one of you leaves - in a one-page memo you both sign. Then have a lawyer turn that into a shareholder agreement. Doing it in that order keeps the lawyer from becoming the thing you argue about.
This content shares personal experience for educational purposes. It is not personalised financial, legal or medical advice. Experts are not necessarily licensed to advise on your specific situation; consult a qualified professional before acting.
