The stakes are high in practice sale transactions.  You are possibly selling a practice with clients of long standing, who you have nurtured for many years, or you are purchasing a practice which you hope will provide the best opportunity for you, so that you can enhance its potential and your income, in your own comfort zone.

There comes a time in every successful veterinary practice owner’s career when they consider opening another branch or buying another practice. This juncture represents a possible turning point in their personal fortune. It introduces an opportunity to grow their wealth by expanding the scale and scope of their business interests and, at the same time, it also introduces new complexities and risks into their life, which have the potential to bring down what they have built thus far.

Once a buyer and seller have agreed to the price and terms of a practice sale, their lawyers’ roles should be straightforward. It should be a matter of documenting pre-negotiated elements of the deal, in a way that both protects their clients’ interests and minimises any potential exposure to risk.

Many people think that that the purchase of a veterinary practice is solely a financial transaction, and that the highest dollar offer will always win the day.

One of the greatest fears buyers of veterinary practices have is that they will pay significant money for goodwill and there will be a mass exodus of clients when they take over. To mitigate this risk, any buyer needs to seriously look at the reasons why a client frequents the practice, and give them no reason to want to change their behaviour. 

Do-It-Yourself (DIY) projects are usually a great source of pride for the person undertaking the project. It is a way of putting your unique touch on something, creating a personal vision or an ideal, from formless raw materials, often saving yourself money at the same time.