If a business is just starting out and can only afford minimal legal advice, what is the one area you would suggest they prioritize to protect themselves?

If you are just starting out as a young business the only thing that you should be focused on (only two things actually) are:

1. Have every single business licence in place. Speak to a lawyer or a domain expert and get these in place. Remember, the government or legal system will have no sympathy for "I did not know I needed that". So, relevant to your business, get every single licence and approval in place. I would highly recommend using your legal budget to engage a lawyer for this.

2. Execute all contracts in writing. Whether it is with vendors, clients, employees, founders - write down what is being agreed to. Put it down in black and white. If you can't afford to hire a lawyer, use templates and common sense to put a basic framework around what you have agreed to. This will save you a lot of pain should things go south.

There are many other things that a young business should do - in terms of best practices - but these are the ones that I see most businesses faltering with. As a consequence such businesses end up spending a lot more of their already limited funds fire-fighting when things turn sour.

Be smart, be proactive. 

If you’re just starting out and can only afford minimal legal advice, I’d suggest prioritizing a Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions for your business website first. These two documents lay the groundwork for protecting your business (after you have registered your business, and you have made your website live).

A Privacy Policy is essential if you’re collecting any user data, even just emails, as it keeps you compliant with privacy laws like GDPR and CCPA. Terms and Conditions set rules for your site, limiting liability and covering key policies like refunds and prohibited activities.