Get a free summary of the scope of Joel's representation of buyers and sellers
Visit Joel's YouTube Channel for videos about buying and selling businesses
PRACTICE
AREAS
Buy or Sell a Business in Virginia
Buy or Sell Assets or Equity
Joel has helped clients close hundreds of deals in diverse industries. He will guide you through your deal by helping you negotiate, draft, and review all deal documents, from the Letter of Intent to the Purchase Agreement to the ancillary Closing documents. He will also conduct legal due diligence, advise you on deal structure, and assist you with obtaining your financing. Joel will manage the deal process for you and act as your settlement agent, if needed.
Schedule a call to explore how Joel can help you with your deal
Launch a Business in Virginia
Entity Formation, Startup Guidance, Essential Contracts
Joel has helped founders launch hundreds of businesses, including consultants, freelancers, construction trades, retail, online, healthcare, real estate, and service businesses. He will help you determine whether you need an LLC or corporation, then set up that entity for you. Joel will also answer any legal questions you may have about starting your business. In addition, he will identify essential contracts our new business needs and draft them for you.
Schedule a call to explore how Joel can help you start a business
Operate a Business in Virginia
Contracts, Leases, Governance, Compliance, Disputes
Small businesses regularly need help with legal issues as they operate, but typically cannot afford to have an attorney on staff full-time. Joel acts as a fractional outside counsel to Virginia businesses to help with drafting, reviewing, and negotiating key contracts, advising on legal compliance, business breakups, and resolving internal disputes among owners and disputes with suppliers, vendors, and customers.
Schedule a call to explore how Joel can help with your operations
CONFIDENCE IN THE PROCESS AND OUTCOME
Buying or selling a business is a process, not an event.
Unfamiliarity with how to navigate the process can cost you money.
Joel uses his 30+ years of experience working on hundreds of transactions to guide you through the process -- from Letter of Intent, to legal due diligence, to Purchase Agreement negotiation, drafting, and review, to Closing -- in a manner that gives you confidence that your interests have been protected.
ATTORNEY
JOEL ANKNEY
BUSINESS LAWYER
Tel: 757.270.4088
Joel is a nationally recognized authority on the purchase and sale of small businesses. He has closed deals with a purchase price of $5 million or less for hundreds of clients, many of which were financed by a combination of SBA loans and seller financing. Joel has also represented sellers in deals to private equity firms and traditional search funds with purchase prices as high as $20 million. Joel has spoken as a guest at leading business schools and on numerous podcasts about the process of buying or selling a small business.
Joel graduated first in his class from law school, then practiced for 12 years at some of the nation's largest law firms. Joel started his own law firm in 2003 to represent small businesses in a more economical and efficient manner.
BOOKS
Here's the Deal: Everything You Wish a Lawyer Would Tell You About Buying a Small Business (2017)
Before You Leap: Your Legal Guide to Starting a Freelance Business (2022)
Rain Catcher: A Lawyer's Marketing Memoir (2024)
EDUCATION
J.D., William & Mary Law School, 1991
B.S., Organizational Psychology, Brigham Young University, 1987
BAR ADMISSION
Virginia, 1991
RECOGNITIONS
Guest Lecturer, Columbia Business School ETA Class
Guest Lecturer, Gies College of Business ETA Class
Virginia Elite Attorney
Coastal Virginia Top Attorney
Order of the Coif
William & Mary Law Review
CONTACT
ANKNEY LAW
OUR ADDRESS
249 Central Park Ave., Ste. 300, Box 43, Virginia Beach, VA 23462
Email: joel@jalawoffice.com
Tel: 757.270.4088
For any general inquiries, please fill in the following contact form:
BACK TO TOP