Early-stage UK startup legal questions, and where the real answers are
Most early-stage UK legal questions are answered free on GOV.UK, Companies House and the ICO, company formation, director duties, employment status and data protection all have official guidance. Pay for a solicitor when the question is bespoke to you: founder agreements, share structures, investment documents and anything you'd struggle to unwind later. This page points you to the sources; it is not legal advice.
At a glance
- Company formation and filings: GOV.UK and Companies House.
- Directors and PSCs now have identity verification duties, check current guidance.
- Contractor vs employee is a legal test, not a label you choose.
- Handling personal data: ICO guidance for small organisations.
- Founder agreements, share schemes and investment: get a solicitor.
Setting the company up
Incorporating a limited company is a straightforward, low-cost process through Companies House, and GOV.UK sets out the steps, director responsibilities and ongoing filing duties.
Under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, identity verification requirements now apply to directors and people with significant control. Check the current Companies House guidance for what applies to you and by when, the timetable has been phased.
Paying people before you can hire
Whether someone is an employee, a worker or self-employed is determined by the reality of the arrangement, not by what the contract calls them. GOV.UK's employment status guidance sets out the tests, and getting it wrong creates tax and employment-rights exposure.
If you do take on an employee, PAYE registration and payroll duties follow.
Data protection from day one
If you handle personal data, even a waitlist: UK GDPR applies. The ICO publishes plain-English guidance and self-assessment tools aimed specifically at small organisations, and most early-stage requirements are practical rather than expensive.
Many organisations that process personal data must also pay the ICO's data protection fee; the ICO's site tells you whether you're in scope.
Owning what you build
Make sure IP created by contractors and early collaborators is assigned to the company in writing, this is a common and painful gap discovered during a first raise. The Intellectual Property Office covers trade marks, copyright, designs and patents.
When to stop reading and pay someone
Get professional advice for founder and shareholder agreements, share option schemes, investment terms, anything involving regulated activity, and any contract you couldn't afford to have go wrong.
Founders who've been through the same thing are useful for what to expect and what it cost, not as a substitute for advice.
Sources
- GOV.UK: Set up a limited company
- Companies House: Verifying your identity
- GOV.UK: Employment status
- GOV.UK: Employing staff for the first time
- ICO: Advice for small organisations
- GOV.UK: Intellectual property
- GOV.UK: VAT registration
Checked when this page was last reviewed (26 August 2026). Official guidance changes, follow the link for the current position.
This page is general information, not legal advice, and it isn't a substitute for a qualified solicitor. Official guidance changes, always check the linked source for the current position before acting.
What NoNetwork can help with
- 'Legal / experience question' is a distinct request type, for what actually happened to other founders, not for advice.
- Guides on NoNetwork cover UK compliance topics in more depth, each with its own sources.
- Nobody here is giving you regulated advice, and the product doesn't pretend otherwise.