3 Things Florida Lawyers Want Businesses to Do as Coronavirus Hobbles Economy

Lawyers are advising businesses to take action now to mitigate potential losses amid coronavirus fallout.

Financial markets shed trillions of dollars this week, entered a bear market, and on Thursday had the worst one-day drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average since Black Monday in 1987, before experiencing a rebound on Friday.

Attorneys say the uncertainty will affect small and large businesses. Here’s what they suggest:

1. Anticipate tighter capital

Daniel Gold, counsel at Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, said business owners who have access to credit and are worried about cash flow or revenue shortfalls are wise to “hit your line of credit now.”

New credit might be hard to come by when more businesses are experiencing revenue shortfalls because of fewer customers or having inventory limitations due to their supply chains being cut off.

“So any restrictions on cash, or any projected revenue shortfalls could be stop-gapped with available credit,” Gold said. “The alternative, seeking credit now, would probably be the best thing to do.”

2. Know that interruption is inevitable

Gold said there is a chance businesses might have to suspend operations as they send employees home.

Next, he advises looking at insurance policies to see what coverage the business has right now. “If you do not have it, try to acquire business-interruption insurance.” Gold said. “There could be long disruptions in supply chains.”

Small businesses are having problems as their supply chains are becoming diminished. For instance, the Purchasing Manager’s Index, which measures manufacturing output, has hit a record low in China, which is the largest exporter in the world and has an influential role in manufacturing.

“Eventually, some sectors of small business are going to be negatively affected,” Gold said. “Whether small business owners need bankruptcy protection personally, because they guaranteed the debts of the businesses or the business itself requires bankruptcy protection, it is inevitable.”

3. No more force majeure?

Despite the low credit rates, it might become more difficult for both small and large businesses to provide services.

Jay Sakalo, a bankruptcy partner at Bilzin Sumberg, said this could complicate performance under certain contracts.

And it’s not just fears of a pandemic putting pressure on the global economy, as coronavirus infections surpass 125,000 worldwide, with more than 4,600 deaths, according to the World Health Organization. Other factors are also at play. An oil war between Russia and Saudi Arabia, for instance, is affecting several industries, while the U.S. trade war with China remains an impediment to global markets.

Amid these concerns, Sakalo is seeing renewed attention to “force majeure clause or material adverse change provisions” that exist in certain agreements. These will need to be examined more closely. Now that certain economists suggested the U.S. has moved into a recession, businesses-providing services may need to cancel agreements with force majeure or material adverse change conditions based on change in circumstances.

Sakalo explained that another consideration is “if they are the one purchasing the goods, whether they have the right to take any action based upon what is going on in the marketplace. That is the first thing lawyers need to be thinking about when advising their clients. It is something we are very actively looking at in the office at multiple levels.”